Survive
by Elizzykay
Summary: "I was supposed to die today, Clarke. This is my second chance. What if, when they come down here, nothing changes? What if they are still going to kill me?" "Then give them a reason not to." BellamyxOC (but probably not until end of season 1/ beginning of season 2) ON HIATUS FOR NOW!
1. Chapter 1

We're not alone

 _"Elliot Jae Riley, do you understand the reason for your arrest?" The man's voice was deep, threatening, but Elliot stayed silent, staring at the floor below her feet. Her wrists were red from her constantly twisting wrists, even though she had given up fighting a while ago. It was no use. There weren't many places to hide if she had gotten free anyhow. Instead, she stood mute in front of Kane and his men, choosing to look everywhere but the man's face._

 _"Elliot." Kane's voice boomed again, and he took a large step forward as if trying to scare the fifteen year old. But she didn't falter._

 _"You are under arrest for aiding and embedding William Riley as well as the murder of said criminal. You will serve your time in the Skybox under surveillance until your eighteenth birthday," he paused, "I hope you are proud of your decision."_

 _At this point, Elliot looked up at the man. Her left eye presented a mixture of purples and yellows, a healing bruise. The cut on her lip had begun to heal and the swelling had gone down. Narrowing her eyes, she stared him down. Kane swallowed, looking back at her, before giving a small nod to the men restraining her. She was taken out of the room and led down a long corridor. People stepped to the side as the three came through, watching as the young girl kept up with the long strides of her captors. She wore no expression, looking straight ahead, and caused no trouble as they released her cuffs and placed her in the cell._

 _The start to the end of her life had begun._

 _Or so she had thought._

The day had come. Three years of readying herself, of talking herself up and now it was time. Today was the day she would be floated. She tried not to be scared. But the night before she had broken down, cried into her hands, even felt the urge to vomit. _They didn't understand. No one even tried to understand._ But as morning came to be, the feeling of terror washed away and she came to be okay with her fate. She didn't even jump when the door opened and two men stepped in.

"Ellie, get up. Let's go," She looked up almost instantly at the sound of Larkin's voice. He hurried to her side, pulling her up off the bed, "Come on, we don't have much time."

Elliot was still in shock at the arrival of her godfather, finding it hard for her to look away. She was afraid that if she did, he would disappear. Vanish and become a guard, taking her away to the her destiny. But he stayed. He was real. She could tell by the tight grip he held on her arm.

"Face the wall." The guard that had followed Larkin in ordered, carrying in his hands a long, rectangular box. Elliot gave Larkin one last look before doing as she was instructed.

"Hold out your wrist."

His voice shook slightly, and Elliot turned to look over at him. He was young, just a few years older than she was. He didn't look as worn and tired like the other guards did, but there was still a sort of age behind his yes. Like he had been through a lot in his life. He looked at her as well, lips forming a straight line and she found herself briefly lost. A sharp pain radiated through her wrist pulling her out of the trance she had fallen into and she retracted her arm from him.

"What the hell is that for?"

From her other side, Larkin appeared. He gave her a kind smile, "You got lucky, kid. You're going to Earth."

Elliot's heart raced. _Earth? What does he mean Earth? Why me?_ She guessed it made sense though, send a criminal, already destined to die. But why to Earth? She wasn't able to ask any questions before she was pulled out of her cell into the brightly lit hallway. Confusion covered her face as she realized the other prisoners were being dragged from their own cells as well. Each wearing the same band around their wrist as she was.

"Listen to me, Ellie," Larkin turned Elliot to look at him, "You've got to trust me on this. Everything is going to be okay."

Ellie shook her head, "What going on?"

"This is your second chance. Redeem yourself," Larkin smiled warmly at her, running a hand over her braided hair, "I know you'll be brave." He stepped away from Elliot, turning to look at the guard, "Get her safely on the dropship. Don't let anything happen to her."

The guard nodded, taking Elliot's arm. There was a moment of the two men staring at each other, as if exchanging a silent conversation before Larkin returned to his rushed attitude and stepped around them.

"Good luck, Bellamy." Larkin nodded at the guard and turned one last time to his goddaughter, "Elliot, may we meet again." And then he disappeared down the corridor, leaving Elliot alone with the guard.

"Come on." He muttered, slightly tugging her in the other direction. Elliot followed behind reluctantly.

The ship was already packed with other teens, all talking loudly amongst one another, asking questions and making up theories. Elliot hadn't seen most of them before and the few she had looked drastically different. Puberty had either really helped or really didn't. Two familiar faces appeared moments later and she felt the urge to cry again. Hooked to one wall of the dropship, Monty Green and Jasper Jordan stared back at her with just as much surprise as she suspected was presented on her face.

"Never thought I'd see you two again." She confessed letting the guard, Bellamy, place her in her seat and fasten her in. She had her back to the two boys, but the fact that they were right there with her, made it all seem a little better.

Bellamy crouched down in front of her briefly, jiggling her harness to make sure it was secured. Elliot watched him. His mind currently busy with her straps but as soon as she was safe, his mind seemed to drift back to whatever it had been stuck on before.

"How do you know Larkin?" She asked, trying to grab his attention. He made her curious. She wanted to know more about this mysterious new guard.

He froze for a moment before looking at her, "I don't. Are you good?" He was talking about her straps, which she ignored and narrowed her eyes.

"You don't? But he knows your name?" Even more curious. "Who are you?" But before she couldn't get a response, a buzzer sounded and the doors began shutting. Elliot listened to them close, her stomach knotting as the doors came together and locked shut. When she turned back to Bellamy, he was walking away, clamoring down the ladder to her left and disappearing below. Leaning her head back against the seat, she shut her eyes and tried to relax.

"Prisoners of the arc, hear me now," The Chancellor's voice made her eyes open once again, "You've been given a second change, and as your chancellor, it is my hope that you see this as not just a chance for you, but a chance for all of us," Elliot felt her eyes roll to the back of her head briefly, scoffing at the man's words, "We have no idea what is waiting for you down there. If the odds of survival were better, we would've sent others. Frankly, we're sending you because your crimes have made you expendable."

 _Dick._ Elliot thought, resting her head back again.

"Your dad is a dick, Wells!" Someone shouted out what she was thinking and she would have snickered if she was shocked to hear that Wells Jaha was on the ship to Earth with them. She searched for him through the teens, finding him beside a blonde female. Clarke Griffin. She had heard about Clarke's father being floated, but the details were fuzzy. Something about keeping secrets and telling people and Clarke was involved and Wells was the one to rat them out. All things she had heard from guards passing through her cell.

"Your records wiped clean," To her dismay, the Chancellor was still talking, going on and on in a monotone voice that only made Elliot sleepy. She perked up as a boy in a beanie floated past her, heading straight for the council kids. Two more boys unstrapped themselves.

"Stay put if you want to live!" Clarke scolded, but her demand was ignored.

"Your one responsibility, is to survive." The Chancellor finished. As if on cue, the ship jolted. Flickering lights and sparks put everyone in an immediate frenzy. Elliot clutched her armrests, eyes shutting closed tightly as the ship rocked and jolted some more. There was a hard crash and then everything went silent.

"Listen," Monty spoke behind her, "No machine hum."

"That's a first." Jasper and Elliot spoke simultaneously.

There was a click from the harnesses and then every teen was scrambling out of their seats, rejoining with friends and composing themselves.

"The outer door is on the lower level, let's go!"

Elliot followed the herd down the ladder and towards the door, only to come to a stop seconds later. It was a tight space for so many teens, each fighting to see what was holding them up. She could just make out faint talking at the front of the crowd, not exactly sure who was doing the talking. As she started to push through, a brunette girl rushed past her, jumping up onto the ladder. Elliot stopped, suddenly interested in why she was in such a hurry to climb back up. The girl stopped just above the heads of the others and a smile stretched across her face.

"Bellamy?"

Elliot looked to the front briefly and then back at the girl. She watched her leap off the ladder and began shoving through the crowd. Wasting no time, Elliot followed behind, finding herself at the front of the group seconds later.

The girl continued towards the older male standing by the door, stopping just inches from him.

"My god," He was smiling down at her, "Look how big you are."

They embraced each other tightly before the female pulled away again.

"What the hell are you wearing, a guard's uniform?"

Elliot swallowed. Her features becoming hostile. The girl seemed surprised by the outfit and it made Elliot's fist clench. _Who the hell was this guy?_

"I borrowed it to get on the drop ship. Someone has got to keep an eye on you." Bellamy smirked, and they hugged again.

"You're not a guard?" Elliot stepped forward, blurting out at the same time Clarke questioned his lack of wristband.

The girl was the first to turn around, a look of annoyance on her face, "Do you mind? I haven't seen my brother in a year."

 _Brother?_ Elliot stepped back into the crowd, shaking her head at the new information she was gathering about the so-called guard. From somewhere behind her, a teen pointed out that no one had a brother only for a girl to respond with, "That's the girl they hid under the floor!" Elliot jumped slightly as the girl lunged forward but she was restrained by her brother. He twisted her back around to look at him, "Octavia, no. Let's give them something else to remember you by."

"Yeah, like what?" The brunette, Octavia's body riddled with attitude as she glared up at her brother.

He smirked at her once again, hand reaching up to grab the door lever, "Like being the first person on the ground in 100 years." Octavia stood still for a moment before stepping back, coming to stand beside Elliot. Bellamy pulled the lever and with a jolt the door began to open. Light poured inside, blinding the teens only briefly before their eyes could adjust. Outside, everything was green and lush. From where she standing, Elliot could tell the air was cleaner. Fresher. Octavia stepped forward again, taking tentative steps down the ramp before leaping off the end and onto the ground below. Every single teen took a step closer, waiting to see if she was going to fall over dead or not.

Throwing her hands into the air, she screamed out, "We're back, bitches!" and the others came rushing out.

Elliot didn't really know what to do or expect, but she was right along everyone else, screaming and laughing and taking in as much of the fresh air as she could. Her fingers ran over the green leaves, trying to remember their each individual texture.

"Ellie!" The familiar sound of her name stopped her and she spun around to see Monty and Jasper staring at her a few feet away.

A happy squeal escaped her lips and she raced forward, colliding with Jasper in a tight hug. He returned the bone crushing gesture before passing her off to Monty. The two boys had been Ellie's only friends back on the arc. Before she was arrested obviously. They were always getting into trouble together, breaking things and giving everyone else headaches. They had come to visit her once before they had been arrested. Larkin had been able to give them a five minute window. They promised they didn't think she was a bad person and that they didn't hate her. Then they were rushed out and the next three years of her life, she wondered about the mischievous boys. She couldn't say she was surprised to see them on Earth with her.

She ruffled their hair, putting on a big sister act, "You two need haircuts. Jeez, you look rough."

Jasper ducked out from underneath her hand, "Wish I could say the same about you. Isolation made you pretty."

She shook her head, waving off the compliment bashfully, "Still trying to flirt up every girl you see?"

"Only the cute ones." Jasper quipped back.

Clarke caught Elliot's eye and she turned to see what the girl was looking over. Wells stepped out of the dropship and began talking to his friend, though even from where Elliot was standing, the conversation seemed rigid and uncomfortable.

Jasper seemed intrigued as well and made his way over, leaving Monty and Elliot to look on in confused amusement.

"Aw, cool a map. They got a bar in this town?" He was flirting again, smiling widely at Clarke, "I'll buy you a beer."

Wells stepped forward, grabbing a hold of Jasper's collar and Elliot moved to put herself between the two.

"Back off, asshole." She growled, only coming up to Wells' chest. Her height was probably the least frightening thing about her.

"Hey, hands off him," Another teen appeared from their left, a group of boys following closely behind him, "He's with us."

 _Murphy._ Elliot rolled her eyes. John Murphy was the kid everyone could help but hate. He was also causing trouble, picking on kids, being the "bully". Elliot could distinctly remember his grubby hands reaching out to yank on her braids and his shit-eating grin he would give her when she wheeled around to sock him in the arm. It wasn't necessarily hate, she felt for the boy, more as complete annoyance. Like the brother you wish you never had but dealt with because, hell he's your brother.

Wells let go of Jasper, turning to face the new comer fully. Jasper recoiled behind Elliot, exchanging a wild glance with his best friend.

"Relax, we're just trying to figure out where we are." Wells defended, raising his hands in the air.

He shouldn't be here. There was no reason for him to be. He would never go against his father's orders and there wasn't much he could do that his father would label as a crime. Wells was the luckiest of them all. There wasn't a person on the ground that didn't hate him. And from what Elliot could sense, that included Clarke.

"We're on the ground. That not good enough for you?" Bellamy stepped forward now, followed by his kid sister. Elliot turned to him. There was a lot she needed to talk about with this so-called guard but she stopped herself, knowing it wasn't really the best time to riddle him with questions. Instead, she turned back to Wells, keeping herself between Jasper and the Chancellor's son.

Wells rolled his eyes, annoyed with everyone, "We need to find Mount Weather. You heard my father's message. That has to be our first priority."

"Screw your father. What, you think you're in charge here, you and your little princess?" Octavia seemed to be a little ball of fire, especially for someone who had been locked in the floor most of her life. Elliot was growing fond of her.

"Do you think we care who's in charge?" Clarke stepped forward, intervening, "We need to get to Mount Weather. Not because the Chancellor said so, but because the longer we wait, the hungrier we'll get and the harder this will be. How long do you think we'll last without those supplies? We're looking at a 20-mile trek, ok? So if we want to get there before dark, we need to leave. Now."

"I have a better idea," This time it was Bellamy, "You two go, find it for us. Let the privileged do the hard work for a change."

Elliot found herself joining in the chorus of agreement, watching Clarke's expression as she did so. She could tell this girl was a fighter and stubborn. And either with everyone else, or by herself, Clarke was going to Mount Weather.

Wells, on the other hand, knew damn well he wouldn't get anyway, but continued, "You're not listening. We all need to go."

Murphy stepped forward, shoving Wells back, "The Chancellor of Earth."

Things became heated fast and Elliot pushed Jasper back and out of the way just in time for Murphy to knock Wells to the ground, kicking him in the ankle in the process. Wells stumbled back to his feet, and raised his fists as if to fight his attacker, keeping pressure off his left foot as much as he could. And they were going to fight, if Spacewalker hadn't intervened, leaping off the side of the dropship and landing between them.

"Kids got one leg. How about you wait until it's a fair fight."

They stared each other down for a long time, before Octavia brushed past Elliot, smirking, "Hey, Spacewalker. Rescue me next."

Everyone snickered and the tension faded. Murphy and his men stepped away, returning to whatever they were doing and Jasper let go of Elliot's sleeve. Wells limped back over to Clarke, setting himself on the dropship ramp as the rest of the 100 dispersed.

Elliot and Octavia exchanged a smile before Bellamy grabbed his sister's attention.

"What? He's cute?" She defended.

Bellamy gave her a pointed look, "He's a criminal."

Elliot was following Jasper and Monty as the siblings bickered and leaned over to interject, "We're all criminals." Octavia gave her an appreciative nod as Bellamy pulled her away.

They had been on the ground for about an hour now Elliot guessed. It had been a lot of introducing herself to others, talking about how cool this place was, and celebrating with people she didn't even know. Regardless, this was the most freedom she had had in three years, she was going to take in as much of it as possible. All she needed was to get this damn bracelet off her wrist and she would be fine. It had been bugging the hell out of her since they had landed, the sharp pain turning into a constant annoyance. Nothing seemed to work either. All she got was a couple dips in the metal and sore fingers. She was fiddling with it again, when Spacewalker tugged at Jasper and Monty.

"Four of us. Can we go now?" He was talking to Clarke and Wells.

"What? Where they go, I go." Elliot added, pointing between the two and herself.

Spacewalker gave her a nod of approval.

"Sounds like a party," Octavia replied, bounding up, "Make it six."

Bellamy followed on her heels, tugging at her arm to scold her. She just shrugged him off, sending an annoyed glance to Elliot.

"Have you been trying to take this off?" Clarke was suddenly pulling at Elliot's wrist, lifting it up to inspect it.

Elliot nodded, "Yeah, so?"

Clarke dropped the girls hand, giving her a dumbfounded look, "So, this wristband transmits your vital signs to the Arc. Take it off and they'll think you're dead."

"Should I care?" Elliot shot back, crossing her arms.

"I don't know. Do you want the people you love to think you're dead? Do you want them to follow you down here in two months? Because they won-"

"Listen, princess," Elliot stepped forward, her expression turning to anger as she pushed the blonde backwards, "I was supposed to die today. Because of a decision those people made. Do you think I give a damn if any of them survive?"

Clarke swallowed and Elliot could see her courage rise, "I do."

They continued looking at one another, reading each other's expressions. Elliot was sure Clarke knew. She had to. She probably knew more about the brunette than anyone else on the ground did. That was only due to her parents being on the council along with Elliot's godfather.

Clenching her jaw, Elliot stepped back. She ignored everyone around her, fixing her jacket.

"Let's go."

Rustling plants behind her signaled that the others were following and she slowed her pace. She was regretting her outburst but she wasn't going to let Clarke get the idea she could be a leader down here. She didn't deserve that. Being privileged up there was enough. It was different down here. This was their second chance. Elliot wasn't going to let Clarke or Wells, for that matter, ruin that.

They walked for what seemed like forever. Elliot and Clarke had pretty much switched places, Clarke knowing the way better than Elliot. The four lagging behind seemed to better company anyway. Elliot had learned that Spacewalker's name was Finn. And Octavia was as much of a fireball if you just talked to her. Finn also had the younger girl wrapped around his finger, stopping momentarily to place a flower behind her ear.

"Now that, my friend, is game." Jasper whispered to his friend, nodding towards the couple ahead of them.

Monty glanced up for a moment before shaking his head, "That, my friend, is poison sumac."

Octavia quickly dismissed the flower from her hair, panicking only for a moment as the trio caught up with them.

"The flowers aren't poisonous. They're medicinal, calming, actually." Monty went on to explain.

Finn and Octavia looked back at him, slightly stunned at his knowledge.

Elliot waved them off, "His family grows all the pharmaceuticals on the Arc."

Up ahead, Clarke had stopped, turning back to them, "Hey, guys. Would you keep up?"

This put the four back in motion, even though there were grumbles and snarky remarks said under their breath. Finn was the only one to speak out, questioning their leader on why she was so on edge. Clarke replied with the fact that they hadn't seen any animals since they arrived and they could all in fact be slowly dying at this point. This left the four somewhat stunned and quiet, before she added, "sure is pretty, though" and turned around, walking away again. Elliot took a deep breath and jogged after her, coming up beside the blonde girl. Clarke looked at her briefly before staring forward once again.

"I'm sorry about earlier." She spoke, breaking the awkward silence.

Clarke gave her a sideways glance but didn't respond. Her pace quickened some.

Elliot hurried to keep up, continuing with the one end conversation, "You can't blame me though. What I said was true. I was supposed to die today, Clarke. This is my second chance. What if, when they come down here, nothing changes? What if they are still going to kill me?"

"Then give them a reason not to." Clarke replied dryly, tripping Elliot up.

The brunette slowed her pace a bit, taking in what Clarke had said. She wanted to argue, tell her that it wasn't going to make a difference. She had done a bad thing. There was no redeeming herself. But before she could get a word out, Clarke was tugging her to the ground. A finger over her mouth kept Elliot quiet and she searched for the reason of Clarke's sudden action. Her eyes landed on a creature about twenty feet in front of them, completely oblivious to their arrival. It was grazing in an open area of the woods, tail flicking every now and again. Behind them, the other four joined, kneeling down to stare at the animal.

"No animals, huh?" Finn hushed, crawling around Clarke and closer to the animal. He moved slowly, eyes focused in front of him. Beneath his foot, a twig snapped and the animal's head jerked up. All of the teens held their breath, unsure what the animal was capable of doing or would do. It turned its head toward the sound and they all gasped. Growing deformed and disgusting from the side of its face, was another held. They watched in horror and disgust as it bounded away, leaving them kneeling in the middle of the woods, looking between each other in a _what the hell_ fashion.

Another hour of small talk kept them busy as they tried to forget about their little encounter and just focus on their mission. It had mostly been stories, or things they saw along the way. Nothing to intriguing.

"You know what I'd like to know? Why send us down today after 97 years? What changed?" Finn asked. He was second in the line of teens, looking down most of the time to keep from tripping. Octavia and Elliot were just steps in front of him, admiring flowers and the lush green growth.

"Who cares?" Octavia replied over her shoulder, "I'm just glad they did. I woke up rotting in a cell, and now I'm spinning in a forest." She spun around, missing Elliot by centimeters and getting no response from Finn. Jasper on the other hand smiled widely at her, making it very evident he was impressed by her actions.

"Maybe they found something on a satellite," Monty spoke, "Ya know, like an old weather satellite or-" His sentence trailed off, leaving it open for anyone who wanted to continue it.

Clarke seemed willing, since she picked up immediately where he left off with, "It wasn't a satellite. The arc's dying."

The four turned to look at her, pausing as she walked through, "At the current population level, there's roughly three months left of life support, maybe four now that we're gone."

"So that's why they locked you up?" Elliot questioned, looking over at Finn.

"Kept you in solitary and floated your old man?" Finn was a little more detailed, causing Clarke to swallow hard before answering.

"My father was the engineer who discovered the flaw. He thought the people had a right to know. The council disagreed. My mother disagreed. They were afraid it would cause a panic. We were going to go public anyway, when Wells-" She stopped there.

"Turned in your dad?" Monty received a punch in the arm and a glare from Elliot, telling him to shut up.

Her attention turned back to the blonde now in the front of the group, waiting to see what she would do next.

"Anyway," Clarke began walking again, "the guard showed up before we could. That's why today. That's why it was worth the risk. Even if we all die, they bought themselves more time."

"They're gonna kill more people, aren't they?" Monty asked what everyone was thinking.

Octavia replied before anyone else could. A snarky remark, about how she didn't care. About how they could all be floated. Jasper disagreed with her, following as she sulked away. Elliot and Monty exchanged a look. It was easier for Elliot to not be as worried about what happened on the Arc. Her entire life was resting on it. There was one person on that ship that cared about her. And before this morning, the last time she had seen him was two years ago. Monty had family up there. People who loved him. Who visited him whenever they could. The look of worry on his face was understandable. And the look of acceptance on Elliot's was too.

"Octavia, what the hell are you doing?" Clarke's voice brought them to the forest clearing, where they found Octavia standing on a large rock in just her underwear and a tank. She looked back at them, smiling before leaping off the rock and into the water below.

Immediately the others ran forward, peering over to see the brunette up to her nose in the murky water.

"Octavia, we can't swim." Monty yelled out.

Octavia lifted her face out of the water, smiling, "No. But we can stand."

With that she rose in the water, laughing as it came to stop just about her hips. This was enough for Elliot and the boys to begin taking off their clothes, excited to explore the water.

Clarke, on the other hand, was nervous, shaking her head as she tried to find something that could ruin this good moment. Luckily, Finn leaned over, informing her that none of them cared and that she needed to take off her clothes. Elliot was using Jasper's back as a brace as she removed her boots when something caught her eye. She stood up straight, narrowing her eyes at the rippling water. A bad feeling set in her stomach and she raced towards the water's edge, sticking out her hand, "Octavia, get out of the water! Get out of the water now!"

The others looked to what she was panicking about. Whatever it was, it was moving fast and before Octavia could turn back around, it had snatched her up and drug her underwater.

"Octavia!" Elliot leapt up, trying to follow the creature as best she could.

There was nothing for what seemed like ages. No rippling water, no movement of any sort. Then, all of sudden, Octavia burst through the surface, screaming and gasping for air. The creature still firmly grasping her in its jaws.

"If we distract it, it might let her go." Clarke explained, moving closer to the edge Elliot followed her, helping her heave a large rock into the cold water below. It splashed loudly and to their relief, let go of Octavia. Jasper raced forward, calling out to the girl in the water. He didn't hesitate to leap in beside her, grabbing at her waist to keep her about water. Elliot followed Monty to the shore, reaching in to grab the two, just as the giant creature swam past again. Clarke was at Octavia's side immediately, ripping at Jasper's shirt to use it as a tourniquet.

"You're gonna be okay." She sighed, examining Octavia's bleeding leg as the young girl thanked Jasper.

"Note to self. Next time, save the girl." Monty joked causing everyone to chuckle.

They hiked for a couple more hours before the sun began to set. The boys had each taken turns helping Octavia and Elliot had even pitched in, giving them all a relief as a second crutch before she finally stopped them, insisting they rest for the night.

"We don't have time." Clarke argued, looking towards their destination.

Elliot helped Monty set Octavia on the ground before approaching the other female, "Clarke, we have no light. Once it gets dark, it's going to be dark. We have no choice. We can camp out here, and continue in the morning. Mount Weather isn't going anywhere."

Eventually she was able to wear the girl down, promising that there would be less distractions tomorrow and even adding in that someone could stand watch. Finn said he would take first watch, but as it grew darker, eyelids grew heavier and soon they were all crowded together, sleeping peacefully. It seemed like her eyes had just closed when Jasper was waking Elliot up, telling her it was time to get moving again. She was sore, but it was the best night sleep she had had in a long time. Standing up to stretch, she helped Octavia to her feet and they were off again.

They arrived at another point in the river, this time staying away from the water as much as possible.

"We need to get to the other side. That's the only way to Mount Weather." Clarke insisted, a hand pressing at her forehead signaling the stressed headache she was getting.

"Calm down, Clarke." Elliot emitted, shading her eyes from the sun, "We'll figure something out." Her eyes caught a large vine dangling from a tree branch just above the water and she hurried over to it. Pulling it back away from the water, she gave it a couple strong tugs and looked at the others.

"What about this?"

"Bitchin'," Finn responded taking it from her head and pulling it himself, "I'm going first."

Ten minutes later and all four of them were still on the same side of the river. Finn, Jasper, and Elliot had climbed to a higher level to get more momentum for the swing but none had been brave enough to try it yet. The other three below them were growing impatient.

"Come on, Finn!" Clarke called out, "You wanted to go first. Now quit stalling! Mount Weather awaits."

They laughed at her urgency, fiddling with the rope more.

Jasper gave Finn a pat on the back, "Just hang on til the apogee and you'll be fine."

Finn returned with a confused look, "The apogee, like the Indians, right?"

Jasper and Elliot exchanged an incredulous look before the female reached up to smack the spacewalker softly on the back of the head.

"Apogee, not Apache, you moron." She scolded.

He chuckled at her and sent her a wink, signaling he was being an ass and trying to stall more time.

"Today, Finn." She replied, shoving him. He saluted her mockingly and turned to Jasper.

"See you on the other side."

But before he could even take a step back, Jasper stopped him. Elliot exhaled sharply, growing slightly irritated with the two of them.

"Let me. I can do it." Jasper took the rope from Finn's hands, glancing at Octavia below. Finn gave him a proud pat on the back and when Jasper's courage faltered, gave him a reassuring look.

"See you on the other side." Jasper replied before leaping off the rock and swinging across to the other side. He landed hard against the ground just missing the water and the others scrambled to get a better look. Seconds later, he jumped to his feet and threw his hands into the air, "We are apogee!"

The others cheered along with him, excitement bumbling inside them. Finn grabbed the rope, holding it out for Clarke to take. Across the water, Jasper shouted out to her, encouraging her. Elliot watched him climb up the mountain some, stopping to brush away at something. He pulled up a large sign, reading it briefly before holding it up.

"Guys! We made it!"

Painted faintly on the sign was the words Mount Weather. They did make it. A wave of relief washed over them as more excitement bubbled. Then out of nowhere a large spear flew through the air, landed deep in Jasper's chest. He was thrown back against a tree, out of view from the others. Elliot let out a scream, lunging forward as if that would do anything to help her friend separated by a body of water. Finn grabbed her quickly, dragging her along behind him and Clarke to a safe hiding place. She collapsed between him and Octavia, panting and searching the trees around them for some kind of movement.

"We're not alone." Clarke breathed, filling them all with dread.

* * *

 **So there is the first chapter. Hope you guys enjoyed it. I tried to give some BellamyxOC action but not to much, obviously they don't really know each other and she's still kind of finding where she belongs in the group, which will be around Jasper and Monty a lot due to the fact that she knew them pretty well before. It will follow the show but have originality to it. Please feel free to leave feedback. I would love to hear what you guys think. Again, hope you guys enjoyed it! Thanks for reading! Xx**


	2. Chapter 2

They were still crouched behind the rock, eyes scanning the tree line for anything, but the only noise around them was their own heaving breathing. Elliot was growing antsy and she moved around to Monty's right.

"We need to run." She hissed, looking over at the others.

"They'll see us." Finn argued back.

She shook her head, practically bouncing on her toes, "Yeah, well right now we're just sitting here like bait. At least with running we have a chance. We head straight back towards camp. We don't stop."

The others were still not convinced. Elliot looked at them each individually, searching for some kind of hope.

"What about Jasper?" Monty whimpered, and Elliot settled down a bit. She saw the look of panic in his eyes. The sadness that his best friend could be dead.

Fingers drumming against the rock in front of her, she peered into the forest again, "We get back to camp. Get recruits. We can come back. But right now, we have no way of fighting whatever the hell is out there. So either stay here and wait for them to find you or run."

She leapt to her feet, taking off into the trees and leaving the other three still crouched down below. She felt bad for leaving them, but hiding wasn't going to help them or Jasper. They needed to get back to camp. Behind her, leaves crunched under heavy footfalls and she glanced back. Finn was there, closing space between the two with Monty and the girls not far behind him. Elliot turned forward once again, relieved to see they had followed her.

Finn took up the lead, pulling them back towards the direction they had come before falling back to bring up the rear. Elliot had slowed to Octavia's side, remembering the girl's leg was injured and running was probably a bitch at this point. She nearly tumbled over Monty as he fell to the ground, dropping to pick him back up without hesitation. Octavia and Finn helped her, only to stop when they saw the rotting skeleton.

"Who are they?" Finn huffed, eyes drifting around the others.

Clarke knelt to the ground, lifting up what seemed like a skull from where Elliot was standing. It was larger than a human skull, but unlike anything she'd ever seen before.

"What are they?" Clarke corrected.

Octavia's hands dropped to her sides, "We are so screwed."

An agonizing scream ripped through the trees around them, raising the hair on the back of Elliot's neck. Her head, like the others, whipped back towards the direction they had come.

"Jasper."

Clarke came racing past her, running back towards the river with Finn and Elliot right on her tail, grabbing at her.

"Stay out of the trees." Finn instructed, pulling the blonde to the ground. The others joined them, staring at the spot Jasper had been attacked. Elliot's stomach dropped. He was gone.

"They took him." Clarke muttered.

This time it was easier to influence the others to run. They never stopped until the dropship was visible and the other 100 hundred were loud enough that Elliot could hear what they were saying. They were chanting actually. Like when a fight breaks out. Pushing past Clarke, she jogged the rest of the way up the hill, reaching the top, only to see Murphy lunge at Wells, a small knife in his hands. His attack was blocked however and Wells twisted him into a headlock, holding his own knife to the teen's neck.

"Wells!" The sudden voice made Elliot jump and she sidestepped out of Clarke's way, "Let him go."

Wells did as he was told, shoving Murphy away from him. The teen lunged forward once again, this time to be stopped by Bellamy. Elliot huffed at the teens and looped Octavia's arm around her shoulder.

"Monty, help me get her down."

Bellamy was there immediately, taking his sister from their arms and lifting her down.

"Where's the food?" He boomed, looking at the other individuals accompanying his hurt sister.

Finn spoke up, settling down on a log to catch his breath, "We didn't make it to Mount Weather."

"We were attacked." Elliot breathed, causing all eyes to fall on her.

Wells stepped up to Clarke, worry in his expression, "Attacked? By what?"

Elliot jumped down off the hill, taking a seat next to Finn and shook her head, "Not what. Who."

"Turns out when the last man from the ground died on the Arc, he wasn't the last Grounder." Finn finished.

It was as if the entire camp simultaneously took a step inward, huddling closer together. Elliot wasn't sure if it was because they were just intrigued to hear more about the craziness that seemed to happen in the last day or if they were terrified.

"It's true. Everything we thought about the ground is wrong," Clarke began and the teens were growing weary, scared. At this rate, they were going to get nowhere with recruits, "There are people here. Survivors. The good news is that means we can survive. Radiation won't kill us."

There was some light.

"Bad news is the Grounders will." And there was the darkness again. Elliot wanted to slap Finn but figured the argument wasn't going to do anything.

"Where's the kid with the googles?" Wells asked, drawing their attention to him now. Elliot became antsy, her foot bouncing up and down.

There was a pause, each of the four survivors looking between each other, waiting to see who would be the one to tell the others that Jasper had not only been hit by a giant spear, but they had also taken him away. Clarke was the first to do so, though her demeanor changed when she realized Wells' wristband was gone.

"Ask him." He sneered, jutting a fingering at Bellamy.

Clarke's tone had changed, annoyance and anger now evident, "How many."

Elliot watched Murphy saunter back up to the group, a shit-eating grin on his face, "24 and counting." She couldn't help the scoff that left her mouth, though her fingers began to fiddle with her own bracelet.

"You idiot!" Clarke exclaimed, falling into a tangent about how they were the ones killing the people on the Arc. Killing themselves. A few teens seemed affected by this, turning to each other to whisper and worry.

Elliot wanted to stand up and remind them that Jasper was still out there somewhere, but Bellamy was already talking.

"We're stronger than you think," His eyes were trained on Clarke as he stepped away from his sister, "Don't listen to her. She's one of the privileged. If they come down, she'll have it good," he looked at the others surrounding them, "How many of you can say the same? We can take care of ourselves. That wristband on your arm? It makes you a prisoner. We are not prisoners anymore!" He turned around slowly, making sure to look at everyone before pausing on Elliot, "They say they'll forgive your crimes. I say you're not criminals!" She felt uncomfortable under his gaze, looking away from him in hopes he would do the same.

"The Grounders should worry about us!" Bellamy finished.

Elliot looked down at her bracelet. It hurt like hell, and she wanted the damn thing off. Her wrist was swollen from the last time she had tried taking it off and she could see flecks of dried blood underneath. But if she took it off, Clarke would hate her. And right now, Clarke was her best bet of survival. Clarke was smart, and brave and would survive. She would go after Jasper, do whatever it took to save him. Clarke was a leader. They just needed everyone else to see that. Swallowing, she pulled she sleeve down, hiding it completely except for the bulky shape it left underneath. She stood up, deciding she should follow the blonde, only to find Bellamy staring hard at her. His eyes travelled down to her wristband then back to her own.

They waited almost an hour for volunteers to go look for Jasper, but came up with nothing. People were either too scared or didn't care at all. And as of now, the search party was still down to Finn, Clarke, Elliot, and Monty. The latter three were scrounging the dropship for any resources they could find, Elliot and Monty practically clearing out the bottom level.

"Where's Clarke?" Well asked, stepping inside.

Elliot stopped what she was doing, standing up and placed her hands on her hips, "She doesn't want anything to do with you, ya know."

Wells nodded, shamefully looking to the floor, "I understand that."

"Then why do you keep trying to get through to her?"

"Where is she, Elliot?" Wells repeated, ending their conversation. Elliot just jutted her head up the ladder and watched him walk by. Her eyes flickered over to Monty, who crouched in the corner, stuffing things into a makeshift bag.

He looked frenzied, hands shaking, forehead beaded with sweat. She had never seen him like this. But then again, she'd also never seen him without Jasper. They were attached at the hip. Even when they were kids, Monty and Jasper were never far apart. They ate together, they did school work together, they were even arrested together. If they lost Jasper, they were going to lose Monty.

Rubbing the bridge of her nose, she knelt back down and continued doing what she was doing.

"Jasper's going to be fine, Monty. He always is." She spoke softly, looking at him kindly.

He didn't look back at her, continuing to pack his things, but she knew he heard her and decided not to push him any further. She was relieved of the awkward silence as Clarke and Wells came back down the ladder, arguing over something.

"You came back for reinforcements." Wells pointed, stopping Clarke.

Elliot was already shaking her head, disagreeing with the idea of Wells coming with them and looked to Clarke with hope of the same response. It seemed to be that way, until Monty chimed in.

"He's right. So far no one else has volunteered."

Clarke gave him a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry, Monty. You're not going either."

Monty and Elliot gave her an incredulous look. Jasper was Monty's best friend. Everyone in this camp was aware of that. Monty wasn't about to stand around and wait.

"You are too important," Clarke explained, "You were raised on farm station and recruited by engineering."

"So?" Monty questioned, crossing his arms.

Elliot nodded, beginning to agree with Clarke, "She's right, Monty. We need you here. Food and communication. You figure out how to talk to the Arc and we'll bring Jasper back."

Finn stepped inside at this time, directing the conversation to him.

"You ready?" Clarke asked, hopefulness in her tone.

Finn looked at her wildly and glanced at the others, "I'm not going anywhere, and neither should any of you. The spear was thrown with pinpoint accuracy from three-hundred feet."

This didn't settle well with any of the others and Finn could tell. He took a tentative step back and gave them a knowing look.

"So what, we let Jasper die?" Monty's voice killed Elliot and she turned to him immediately.

"That's not gonna happen." She reassured, looking back at Clarke and Finn.

Clarke stepped forward, looking over Finn, "Spacewalker? What a joke. You think you're such an adventurer. You're really just a coward."

And then she was storming out of the ship, leaving Elliot was a satisfied smirk on her face. She gave Finn a pointed look and began to follow Clarke when he grabbed her arm.

"It's not an adventure. It's a suicide mission."

Elliot nodded, ripping her arm out of his grasp, "Says the kid who went out into space with no idea what he was going." And then she too was gone, following Clarke's footsteps outside.

The three boys stood around, silently exchanging glances with one another. Finn didn't seem like he was going to crack anytime soon, but the thought of two girls going out alone with whoever had attacked Jasper still roaming around didn't sit well with him. He was growing jittery.

"Build a wall. Use fallen trees. I'll watch out for them." Wells comforted him, putting on a brave face.

Finn watched him walk away, teeth gritting together. Definitely wasn't sitting well with him.

Clarke was waiting at the end of the ramp for her and Elliot hoped Finn would follow. They really did need him. And now that she was thinking about it, Wells would be nice too. To her dismay however, Wells was the only one to appear out of the dropship, hurrying up to them with a readiness in his eyes. The two girls exchanged a look, a small nodded before Clarke scanned the rest of the camp.

"I need to find Bellamy." She informed Elliot, and the brunette found herself looking for the boy as well.

She could just see the top of his head, knelt down in front of another brunette, no doubt Octavia and pointed him out to Clarke. Clarke spun on her heel, marching over to him quickly, Elliot and Wells jogging to keep up.

"You could've been killed." Bellamy scolded his sister, dabbing a clean cloth to her bleeding leg. She winced, wanting to snap back at him, but the pain was enough to keep her quiet.

"You guys leaving? I'm coming too." She spoke once the others arrived, making like she was getting up, but Bellamy immediately shot that down.

"No, not again." He kept a steady hand on her, keeping her from trying to stand again.

Clarke nodded, "He's right, your leg is just going to slow us down," her attention was focused on Bellamy, watching him wipe his hands clean, "I'm here for you."

Everyone within ear distance looked at her, confusion and surprised on their face. Elliot was the least taken back by the statement. Though she didn't trust the guy, he could probably hold his own if things came down to it. She watched him stand, coming to tower over her by a good five, six inches.

"I hear you have a gun," Clarke stated and Elliot found she wasn't surprised when Bellamy lifted the hem of his shirt to reveal the loaded weapon, "Good, follow me."

Bellamy chuckled, turning to look at her, "And why would I do that?"

Elliot stepped in this time, glowering up at him, "Because you want them to follow you, and right now, they're thinking only one of you is scared."

Bellamy swallowed, looking down at her. Her lips formed a tight line before breaking into a smirk and she led Clarke away, Wells hurrying behind. They reached the outskirts of the camp before she turned back to see if Bellamy was following. And sure enough he was, with Murphy unfortunately, in tow. Clarke and Wells continued on, leaving Elliot to lag behind. She was situated between both couples, eyes alert and scanning the trees.

"Since when are we in the rescuing business, huh?" Murphy kept his voice low enough that the two in front couldn't hear, but Elliot was close enough to just make out what his annoying voice was saying.

"The Arc thinks the prince is dead," She tried to listen harder as Bellamy gave his response, "Once they think the princess is too, they'll never come down."

Elliot's body went stiffened some and she glanced at Clarke. The blonde had looked back as well and sent her a small smile before looking ahead once again.

"I'm getting that wristband, even if I have to cut off her hand to do it." Bellamy was just steps behind her now.

Swiftly, snatching the knife from her belt loop, she spun around. Bellamy stumbled to a stop as the blade poked at his chest. Stunned by the sudden attack, Murphy backed away, watching Elliot intently. She glanced between the two and took a step closer towards her target.

"You do anything to hurt Clarke, and I'll kill you myself." She growled, eyes locking with Bellamy.

But he wasn't scared. She could see it. He was staring back at her with the same amount of anger and resentment as she was giving him. Pushing the blade further against his chest, she gave him one final warning and pulled way.

"That goes for you too, asshole." She spit at Murphy before pocketing her knife and walking away. They watched her catch up to Wells and Clarke and exchanged a look.

Even though she shouldn't have been, Elliot found herself bored. She was over the trekking up and down hills, the feeling of edge that something was going to happen at any minute. Her blade had found itself back in her head and she busied herself tossing it around, flipping it and twisting it around. She was currently trying to flip it between two fingers when Bellamy and Murphy brushed past her on either side.

"Hey, hold up. What's the rush?" Bellamy had his gun out, waving it around dangerously as they came up beside the other two, "You don't survive a spear through the heart."

Wells defensively stepped between the freckled male and Clarke, his tone threatening as he ordered Bellamy to put the gun away. Murphy stepped in, shoving the boy back.

"Why don't you do something about it, huh?"

With a yank from Elliot, Murphy was pulled away from him, though his eyes were locked on Wells.

Clarke seemed unfazed by the situation, turning to Bellamy, "Jasper screamed when they moved him. If the spear struck his heart, he'd have died instantly."

Talking about Jasper made Elliot's hands sweat. The only thing they seemed to accomplishing was bickering with one another. Especially Murphy and Wells. Elliot was growing tired of stepping in, shoving one away from the other and mumbling something like "dicks" or "jackass" under her breath. She was sick of defending people. Murphy was more than capable of handling himself. He was crazy and she was well aware of this. But Wells Jaha was a different story. There wasn't a person in this camp that didn't want him dead. They were all waiting for their opportune moment to get their hands around the Chancellor's son's neck. Elliot had felt the urge just like everyone else, many times, but Wells was a criminal just like the others. He was sent by his father with the possibility of death just like everyone else. He could use a little help. Moving away from the two, she joined in Bellamy and Clarke's conversation.

"That doesn't mean we have time to waste." Her attention was focused on Clarke, finding she didn't give a damn what Bellamy thought.

The two girls turned to begin walking again when Bellamy grabbed at Clarke's wrist, "As soon as you take this wristband off, we can go."

Elliot raised her knife, ready to fight anyone if she had to. But Clarke seemed to hold her own, ripping her wrist away from Bellamy and stepping into him, "The only way the Arc is going to think I'm dead is if I'm dead. Got it?"

Bellamy huffed, leaning back, "Brave Princess."

Finn appeared from behind them, mumbling something about how shitty their search party was. He suggested they split up, leading Clarke away from the others. Elliot looked back at Bellamy, eyes narrowing slightly and grabbed at Wells. "You're with me." She grumbled, leaving the other two to follow behind.

Soon she was back to flipping her knife. She was getting better at it now, it was easier to twirl it around her fingers than her hand entirely and it had even caught the attention of Murphy. He watched her as they continued hiking.

"I'm surprised they didn't just float you, Half pint." He spoke, stuffing his hands into his pockets. He had stepped closer to her, only for the benefit of their conversation but all the same she stepped away. She cringed at the nickname, hoping he'd never use it again and decided to ignore him.

"I mean, doesn't make much of a difference, does it? You being sent down here, or you being floated. Still gives them more time up there." He continued.

She looked at him, knife falling into her hands one last time. As much as she wanted to jab the thing into his chest, he was making sense. It didn't make a difference. She was supposed to be floated and instead they gave her a chance to live again. Larkin. His face flashed through her mind and her heart ached. He had to have said something. Maybe the council had decided to float her and Larkin stopped them, changed their minds. It would make sense with why he came to her cell. But why was he so anxious the entire time. And what about Bellamy? Larkin had to have known Bellamy wasn't a member of the guard. Was he helping him too? Did he know Bellamy's motives. She need to talk to him and soon.

"Half pint?" There was the nickname again. But she was too busy lost in her own mind to hear him. It took him two more times calling out her actual name for her to look back at him.

Shrugging nonchalantly, she simply replied, "Guess I just got lucky."

And the conversation ended.

"Check the riverbank, but stay in the trees!" Finn ordered. He and Clarke were already heading off away from the others and Murphy seemed to be following her wherever she went, so ignoring him completely, she went about look for signs of Jasper.

Ten minutes later, Clarke and Finn had found something and they all gathered by a quiet bend in the river. Finn was following a trail of blood and something else Elliot had yet to pick up on but she had faith in the spacewalker and kept her complaining to a minimum. Murphy didn't, however.

"How do we know this is the right way?

Bellamy was beside him and answered first, insulting Finn.

"It's called "cutting sign". Fourth-year earth skills. He's good." Wells defended, not bothering to look at either of the boys.

"You want to keep it down or should I paint a target on your backs?" Finn growled back. Elliot and Clarke both followed closely behind him, leaving the other three, thought Elliot caught the "you're invisible" jab Bellamy sent towards Wells.

Then, somewhere in the distance, there was a moan. The five became rigid, looking around them panicked.

"Now would be a good time to take out that gun." Clarke mumbled at Bellamy.

"That was Jasper." Elliot couldn't take it anymore. Pushing past Finn, she hurried in the direction of the moan. Clarke raced after her, calling for her to stop. They burst through a tree line not long after stumbling to a stop. Strapped to a tree, unconscious and clearly wounded, was Jasper. Elliot didn't know whether to laugh or cry. But she did know they needed to help him. Leaving the others behind once again, she hurried towards her friend. Clarke was right beside her.

"Be careful!" Finn yelled out, watching the girls closely. The boys had flocked around them, scanning the place a little more thoroughly than the girls had and Bellamy just caught Clarke's wrist as she plummeted into a covered trap. She dangled above a row of spikes, wrapping her fingers as tightly as she could around her saviors arm.

"Clarke!" Elliot screamed out, stumbling as Murphy stopped her from almost the same fate.

She watched as Bellamy held the girl over the spikes, making no inclination of pulling her up. Ripping away from Murphy's grasp, she raced forward and dropped to her knees. Reaching down to Clarke, she took the girl's other hand, "Pull her up!"

Bellamy seemed to snap out of a trance and began pulling. He was stronger than Elliot and did most of the work, but with help from the other three boys, Clarke was soon safe again. The sudden release of tension flung Elliot back and she landed hand on her butt. A dull pain moved through her body and she suddenly felt exhausted. Taking in a deep breath, she readied herself to stand up. She paused when a hand reached out to her. She looked up at Bellamy, debating silently whether she should take his offer or not. _What the hell,_ reaching up, she took his hand and let him pull her to her feet. There wasn't a word exchanged but she didn't care, instead, her attention turned back to Jasper. Finn was moving towards him, pulling a knife out, "I'll climb up there and cut the vines."

Wells stepped forward, starting to follow him but Finn stopped him, "No. Stay with the girls," his eyes shifted to Bellamy, "And watch him. You," he pointed at Murphy, "let's go."

Murphy grudgingly obliged, moving around the others to follow Finn.

"There's a poultice on his wound." Clarke informed, staring at Jasper.

The other three on the ground with her, moved in closer. Elliot's hands balled into fists, shaking with adrenaline. There were cuts littering Jasper's body. If he was alive, he wouldn't be for long. Her faith dwindle and her throat went dry; she couldn't loose him. Not like this. Not now.

"Medicine?" Wells asked, "Why would they save his life just to string him up as live bait?"

Something wasn't right. And by the sound of it, the others were thinking the same thing. The new wave of fear made Finn and Murphy quicken their movements. Only seconds later, they were stopped by a low growl.

"What the hell was that?" Elliot whimpered, spinning around quickly.

She looked to Bellamy with confusion, finding it even more upsetting that he was just as confused and frightened as she was.

"Grounders?" He questioned.

His question was answered when a large black cat appeared in between the trees. Its head ducked low and shoulders arched back. His eyes trained on Elliot and Clarke.

"Bellamy! Gun!" Elliot shouted out, trying to steal herself as the cat leapt forward, racing towards them.

She yelped as she was snatched the side, bullet firing from the other direction of where Bellamy stood. She realized Bellamy had pulled her out of the way, keeping himself between her and the now wounded cat that hide itself in the underbrush. She saw it in slow motion. Leaping out of the underbrush on their left, claws and teeth ready to rip into whichever it had targeted as prey. She let out a scream, grabbing a hold of Bellamy back as another gunshot echoed around them and the cat fell dead. Breathing heavily, she stared at the dead animal, watching it twitch momentarily before becoming completely still.

"Now she sees you." Bellamy huffed in front of her, and her eyes darted to him. He was looking at her as well, making her grow uncomfortable. Releasing her grasp on his jacket, she turned away, moving to join Clarke beside Wells.

Finn and Murphy's pace quickened even more and soon Jasper was free. It was tricky getting him down but he was breathing and there was still hope. Once Clarke had looked over him, Wells and Finn lifted him off the ground. Bellamy had pulled Murphy to the side, unfolding a large tarp from his bag and laying it beside the dead cat. They lifted the animal onto the tarp and both took up an end.

"What are you doing?" Elliot wiped sweat from her forehead, trying to ignore the stiffness in her body.

"We gotta eat something." Bellamy replied.

The hike back to camp was mostly quiet. Clarke led them with Wells and Finn carrying Jasper closely behind. Elliot stayed close behind them, her eyes never leaving Jasper. His back was just as bloody and sliced as his front but she was glad to see the spear didn't have an exit wound. She didn't know much about these things, but that seemed to be one of the good things Jasper had going for him at this point. One less wound, less blood loose.

"Elliot."

She turned to Bellamy, an eyebrow raised in questioning. She was too tired to speak. That and she just didn't want to. He pulled his head back, signaling her to slow down a bit. She did, expecting him to ask her to carry that damn cat for a while.

"How's your arm?" He asked.

She couldn't respond at first. She wasn't used to his tone being so low. Almost kind. Like he actually did give a shit that her wrist was aching and she was pretty sure it was bleeding again, but she couldn't leave well enough alone, so she'd continue to pick at it until eventually her wrist fell off. Looking at him, she shrugged.

"Hurts. Nothing I can't handle."

Bellamy nodded, knowing she was sugarcoating things. She watched his mannerisms. How his jaw clenched when he was thinking and his eyes narrowed because he knew she was lying. She knew where this conversation was going and sudden became hostile with him again.

"I'm not taking it off if that's what you're thinking. It stays on unti-"

"Until what? They come down here and kill you?" Bellamy's mood changed. _There it is._ She oddly felt more comfortable with this side of Bellamy than his kinder side, but maybe that because his kinder side was used to manipulate her. He wasn't actually being kind. He was trying to get what he wanted, and when he failed, he snapped back out of it.

"This wristband doesn't come off, until I say it does." She raised an eyebrow at him.

He scoffed, shaking his head and looking away from her, "Until your little chancellor tells you too?"

Stepping in front of him, she jabbed a finger at his chest, "Listen asshole, I don't take orders from anybody. Not Clarke. Not you. This wristband stays on because _I say it does._ End of conversation."

She spun around, falling back into her usual pace. She could feel Bellamy's smirk burning into the back of her head and her blood boiled.

Their arrival back at camp was announced by some kid with a buzzcut. His proclaim brought the rest of the camp over to where the six appeared. Monty hurried out of the drop ship, mouth opening in shock at the sight of his best friend.

"Is he?"

Elliot nodded, coming up to embrace him tightly, "He's alive."

Clarke was already headed up the dropship ramp, waving Finn and Wells to follow. "I need boiled water and strips of cloth for bandage." She ordered. Elliot and Monty immediately took off to find what she asked for.

Once Clarke had what she needed, Elliot excused herself from the ship, stepping back into the fresh air. She stood at the end of the ramp for a moment, closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. _Jasper will be okay. Jasper will be okay. Jasper will be okay._ Opening her eyes, she looked around at the camp. People were laughing, talking and joking. Some had started to collect firewood, piling it in the center of their makeshift camp ground. Bellamy was overlooking a couple of kids skinning the cat, arms crossed, stoic looking, he had removed his jacket, revealing the muscles underneath. _If he wasn't such an asshole_ , Elliot thought eyes scanning over his frame. Scoffing at herself, she erased the thoughts and focused on finding something to make herself busy. Monty stepped onto the ramp beside her, heading inside with another pile of clean rags. They exchanged a smile and Elliot reached out to squeeze his arm. _Jasper will be okay._ Licking her lips, she stepped onto the ground and headed towards a young girl with tangled braids

"Mind if I help?" She asked, lifting a couple of logs into her arms. The young girl gave her an appreciative nod, collecting her own bundle of sticks.

"What's your name?" Elliot made small talk as they walked over to the forming fire pit.

"Charlotte." The girl responded meekly.

Elliot smiled widely, watching the young girl toss her firewood into the pile, "Charlotte. That's a nice name. I'm Elliot."

"I know who you are." Charlotte nodded causing Elliot to pause. She waited for the blow that would knock her off her feet. Metaphorically speaking, of course, but it never came. Instead, she looked over at the young girl, probably not much older than fourteen. Charlotte was watching her patiently, like she was waiting. Elliot dropped her logs on top of Charlotte's. Again she found herself waiting for Charlotte to say something but still, she didn't say anything. This time she smiled though. A warm, comforting smile. Like she knew why Elliot had suddenly fallen quiet and anxious and was trying to tell her, she was alright. Elliot brushed off as much of the anxiety as she could, reach out to loop an arm around the girls shoulders.

"Come on, let me fix those messes you call braids."

By the time Elliot had finished Charlotte's braids, the meat was cooked and people were lining up to get their first hearty meal on the ground. Bellamy had ordered for wristbands to be removed in order to get food and people actually agreed. Elliot glared from her perch, looping the hair band one last time around Charlotte's braid. At the same time, the young girl's stomach growled. Elliot's eyes fell to her wrist, defeated when she saw the large, metal band still wrapped around it. By the fire, she could see others removing theirs, hissing at the pain. Again, Charlotte's stomach growled and the two girls exchanged a look.

"Stay here." Elliot squeezed her shoulder and stood up, strolling towards the waiting food. She picked up a piece of meat skewered on a stick just as Bellamy grabbed at her arm.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Eating." She growled back, not even a tiny bit afraid of the dark haired male.

"Take off the bracelet and you can eat all you want."

Elliot chuckled, raising the meat to her mouth and taking a large bite, "I told you earlier, Bellamy. I don't take orders from you." She hummed, mouth full of food.

With another smirk, she turned back the way she came and left Bellamy standing, fuming, in front of the others. As she took a seat next to Charlotte, handing the food over to her new friend, she found his eyes again. Behind him, a kid stepped out of line, grabbing at another piece of meat, but Bellamy stopped him, punching him hard in the jaw. Elliot's smirk faded and her eyes hardened.

"Do you want anymore?" Charlotte was offering the food back, her own mouth packed with the juicy meat.

Ellie shook her head, "Nah, you finish it. I'm going to go check up on my friend. I'll see you later, alright?"

With that, she left Charlotte to finish her dinner and headed towards the dropship. She could feel Bellamy watching her as she ducked inside.

* * *

 **I wanted to get the first couple chapters out just to get the ball rolling. Hope you guys are still enjoying it. Thanks to SamiJo2402 for your kind review, I'm glad you are enjoying it so far. I will try to get a new chapter up every Saturday, the latest Sunday night. Once again, hope you guys like it and feedback is also appreciated. Xx**


	3. Chapter 3

Three days. Three days of no improvement. Three days of pacing the dropship. Three days of racing hearts and sweaty palms. Elliot was growing restless; she didn't eat, she couldn't sleep, her mind was filled with her injured friend. Her dying friend. _No. He's not dying. He'll be fine. Clarke knows what she's doing._ But it had been _three long days_ and the only improvement Jasper had really made was his vocal ability. The camp was filled with his painful moans, and the others were growing restless. Elliot included. She couldn't deal with the idea that there wasn't anything she could do to relieve her friend's pain. All she could do was what Clarke instructed her to, which consisted mostly of retrieving water and making sure Jasper's fever didn't get worse. Sometimes Clarke just sent her away, telling her to get some air or something to eat. Elliot obeyed with some reluctance, climbing down the ladder slowly, hoping Clarke would change her mind. But Clarke never did.

Elliot would stumble out of the ship, blinking at the bright light and search for something to do. The first time Clarke had kicked her out, she met a girl around her age building a makeshift tent. Elliot offered her assistance and the girl happily accepted. They spent a couple hours talking and getting to know one another, neither mentioning even the hint of what dirty deed they had done to be sent down here. By the end of the day, Elliot had a new friend, Harper. The girl was sweet and funny and Elliot found it hard to believe she had done anything bad to deserve arrest. They ate dinner together that night, joined by Charlotte, before Elliot retreated back up to the dropship to check on Jasper.

"How is he?" She asked, pulling herself into the second level of the ship. Monty was back in his corner, working on communication with the Arc. He was there most days, trying to keep his mind busy, though Elliot was fully aware of the weary glances he took over his shoulder to his best friend through the days.

Clarke was bent over Jasper, two fingers pressed against the side of his neck, her eyes on the watch around her wrist, "His pulse is 380." Elliot wasn't completely sure what that was supposed to mean, but didn't take it as good. Clarke's look and tone only established her thoughts. Sighing, she came and sank down on Jasper's other side.

She took his head, running her thumb over the clammy skin and swallowed. He looked so sickly. Face sunken in and pale, scrunched up in pain. Beads of sweat sat on his forehead, dampening his hairline. His chest fell and rose rapidly, as his body tried to fight. Elliot never felt so helpless before. He let out a groan and her grip tightened around his limp hand. Below, some kid shouted out about him dying already and Elliot tried to block it out. Reaching forward, she brushed strands of hair from his face and smiled softly, "You're going to be fine, Jas. Don't listen to 'em." She wasn't sure if the statement was directed at him, or her, but it wasn't working. She could feel her faith dwindling. Something needed to happen. And soon.

A hand fell on her shoulder, squeezing it briefly and she looked up at Clarke. The blonde gave her an encouraging smile before pushing off the ground. "I'm going to get water. Watch him for me?" Elliot nodded turning her attention back to Jasper.

When Clarke had left, Monty took her place, staying on his feet as he crouched, like he wasn't going to be there for long. He was silent, eyes scanning over Jasper's pained face and the wounds on his chest. He hadn't talked since they brought Jasper back, keeping just out of the way but still close enough to watch over his best friend. He looked lost. Heartbroken. And almost guilty. Elliot had wanted to say something. Tell him it was going to be okay. But he'd been told that already and no progress had been made. She couldn't lose them both. Not again. Not so soon. She just got them back, she wasn't ready to say goodbye yet.

"Do you remember that time we were racing through the Arc and Jasper fell and broke his arm?" She mumbled meekly. She wanted him to respond, with words. Share the memory that she knew he'd remember. If she couldn't help Jasper, she could at least help Monty.

It took a moment, she even thought he'd get up and leave, but he finally looked up at her and nodded, "He pretended like nothing happened."

Elliot couldn't help but smile, "His mom told us not to do anything reckless. She made us swear to be good. We thought she was going to kill us!" She wanted to cry as a smile ghosted across Monty's lips.

 _Their feet thudded against the floor, cutting corners too sharply, and barely missing others as they chased each other. The race had begun back at Jasper's house. The finish line was their typical lunch table. The reward had been yet decided but the competiveness was bubbling within the three kids and they were running before they even knew why._

 _Jasper had taken the lead, his long legs practically gliding him across the floor. But Elliot was fast and was on his heels. She would give him a run for his money, no doubt. Monty wasn't a runner. He had long since quit trying, knowing he would lose regardless and instead kept a steady jog up. He didn't see Jasper skid around a corner, lose his footing and crash to the floor with an "oomph!". Elliot had almost met the same fate if she hated sidestepped around him, using the wall to slow her down. Her eyes went wide as she stared down at Jasper, who was mirroring her expression. Monty arrived moments later, already understanding the level of trouble they would be in if Armetta Jordan found out._

 _Right before the trio had started their race, Jasper's mother had scolded them all, a long finger jutted out at them._

 _"Do not do anything you know you shouldn't. I don't want to have to pick any of you up from the med ward, or find out you got yourselves arrested." She had said, her voice sounding even more menacing now as they stood around, glancing at one another with panicked looks._

 _Jasper jumped to his feet, immediately pulling his arm into his chest._

 _"It's broken. Oh, god, it's broken." Monty panicked. He was pacing back and forth, causing Elliot to panic along with him._

 _Jasper shook his head, waving him off with his good arm, "No. No it's not. It's fine. Just a little sore."_

 _Elliot shook her head, and spun around quickly, looking stressfully for Armetta to appear, ready to kill all three of them._

 _"May-maybe we should take you to Abby. Your arm doesn't look to good, Jas." She pleaded, eyes falling on the swelling arm tucked into her friend's chest._

"It's my fault." Monty wearied, staring down at his friend. Elliot blinked away the memory, a lead weight dropping in her stomach at his statement.

"Monty, there is no way any of this is your fault. Things happen."

Monty shook his head, "It's my fault he's even down here. If I had been more careful, we wouldn't have gotten caught. I got us arrested," He looked up at Elliot, "He wouldn't be dying if it wasn't for me."

Elliot didn't know what to say. The fact that Monty blamed himself for Jasper's attack was unfathomable for her. She placed a hand on his shoulder, wanting to tell him that Jasper would be fine. She wanted to tell him to not give up hope and hold out for his best friend, but she couldn't find her voice. Instead, she gave him a soft look, showing him that she was there. He looked back at her, but she didn't expect him to say anything. After a moment, he stood up, moving back to his "work station" and the room fell quiet again. When Clarke returned, she demanded Elliot get some rest.

"There's nothing we can do except wait for his fever to break. Get some sleep."

She was talking low, her voice expressing her own exhaustion. Elliot didn't argue, shuffling over to a pallet in the corner and curling in around herself. She didn't think she would be able to sleep, but the next thing she knew Finn was gently shaking her awake. She sat up, disoriented and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"We need your help." He helped her to her feet and the two joined the others gathered around Jasper.

Clarke dried her hands on a wet rag and picked up what looked like a makeshift scalpel, "Wells, Finn, you guys hold down his legs. Ellie help Monty keep his middle still."

Ellie shifted beside the blonde girl, doing as she asked, anxiously, "What are you going to do?"

Clarke paused, turning back to her, "He's septic. I need to get the infected flesh cut away to save him. We have no anesthesia, he's gonna feel it. But I can't have him moving around."

Before Elliot had a chance to respond, Clarke turned back to her prior duty. Her hand was shaking; she was nervous. But she steeled herself, regaining composure and pressed the blade to Jasper's wound. An immediate scream ripped through the dropship and the others cringed. They fought to keep him from moving, eyes glued to where Clarke sliced away at the infected skin. The more she cut, the harder Jasper thrashed. It was getting almost unbearable to listen to and Elliot's concentration was lost. She could tell the others were feeling the same because Clarke pulled away, yelling at them to hold tighter. They were stopped by Octavia rushing forward, shoving Clarke's hand away from Jasper's body.

"Stop it! You're killing him!"

Elliot pulled away from Jasper, rising to her feet in a panic. She couldn't do it. Listening to him, watching Clarke. It was too much. Her stomach knotted together and she wanted to vomit. She even tempted to escape, only to turn and find the older Blake sibling making his way up the ladder. They made eye contact briefly, before attention was pulled back to Jasper.

"She's trying to save his life." Finn explained to Octavia.

"She can't." Bellamy deadpanned behind them. Clarke shot him a nasty glare, annoyed that he believed his opinion was needed.

"We didn't drag him through miles of woods just to let him die." She replied calmly. She hoped this would send the boy on his way, but he only stepped closer, coming up beside Elliot.

"The kids a goner. If you can't see that, you're deluded. He's making people crazy."

Elliot couldn't help but agree with the last part. Hell, he was making her crazy. But she couldn't blame the kid. He had been speared through the chest, dragged through woods and hung in a tree. He was allowed to let out a few moans.

"Sorry if Jasper's an inconvenience to you, but this isn't the Arc. Down here," Clarke sneered, sending another nasty look over her shoulder at him, "Every life matters."

Bellamy shook his head, "Look at him. He's a lost cause."

The others shifted uncomfortably. Maybe Bellamy was right. Maybe Jasper was a goner. But there wasn't a chance in hell Clarke was going to give up on him. Elliot knew that. And she had faith in her. If anyone could save Jasper, it would be Clarke.

Clarke had mumbled something about hope to Octavia and Bellamy stepped even further forward, "This isn't about hope, it's about guts. You don't have the guts to make hard choices. I do. He's been like this for three days. If he's not better by tomorrow, I'll kill him myself," With that, he turned away, stepping back towards the ladder, "Octavia, let's go."

But Octavia stayed right where she was. She gave Clarke a determined look which Clarke returned with a thankful smile and Bellamy was left to leave alone. His eyes glanced back at Elliot's, scanning over her meek frame before disappearing below.

"Power-hungry, self-serving jackass. He doesn't care about anyone but himself," Monty degraded, his eyes shifting to Octavia apologetically, "No offense." She just shrugged him off.

Finn nodded, agreeing with the younger boy, "Yeah, Bellamy is all that," then his expression changed, "But he also happens to be right."

A dark tone settled over the teens, none really know what to say after that. Elliot stood behind them, feeling lightheaded and sick to her stomach. _No. Jasper's not dying. He can't die. This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't supposed to be how his second chance played out. He was supposed to live. For a long time, happily. He was supposed to be free again._ She grabbed the ladder to keep herself upright, letting out a shaky breath.

The action caught Clarke's attention and she rose to her feet, making her way quickly to the panicking girl. She wiped away the sweat forming on Elliot's brow and grabbed her forearms gently, "Maybe you should get some fresh air. We can handle this, all right? Go get some water and sit down for a minute."

Elliot stood up straight, pulling out of Clarke's grip, "I'm fine. I just got a little lightheaded is all."

But Clarke wasn't convinced. "Go, Ellie. I promise I'll come get you if anything happens." Elliot was stubborn but Clarke was too, and fresh air did seem nice to her. Ducking her head, she turned and stepped onto the ladder. Clarke stayed beside it until Elliot's feet had firmly reached the ground and gave her one last smile before returning. Another scream from Jasper made Elliot's eyes squeeze shut and she hurried outside.

Getting as far as she could from the dropship but still close enough to the rest of the campers, she took a deep breath. It was shaky and made her feel even more lightheaded. She used a tree to lean against, praying she wouldn't pass out when someone cleared their throat behind her. The last person she expected to see offering water was Murphy.

"You look like shit." He teased with a cocked smirk. She rolled her eyes, turning away from him. Her arm was growing tired against the tree and she sank to the ground, throwing her legs out in front of her. Maybe if she ignored him enough, he'd just leave her alone.

But he didn't. Instead, he crouched beside her, holding out the water, "Take it. You need it."

She did. And it looked so good. So fresh. And it tasted a whole lot better than whatever they had been drinking on the Arc. Feeling her mouth start to water, she reached out and took it, downing the liquid all at once. She couldn't help the sigh that escaped when she swallowed, pulling the cup away from her lips. It made her feel a little better. Her queasiness had vanished though the lightheadedness was still apparent. Pulling her knees to her chest, she rested her arms on top and buried her face in the crock of her elbow. It was cool, despite the outside heat. If Murphy hadn't decided to sit beside her, she might have fallen asleep. Instead, she lifted her head again, looking over at him with narrowed eyes.

"How's goggle boy?" He asked ignoring her look.

An eyebrow raised, "Why do you care?"

He shifted, getting comfortable, "There has to be some kind of progress being made if he's still up there screaming. Right? I mean, why drag it out if he's dying? Aren't you just hurting him even more?"

Elliot swallowed. Was she actually taking note on what Murphy was saying? Believing that he could be right? Were they just elongating Jasper's death, making him suffer? She hated that she even thought Murphy was making sense and bit down on her cheek, "He's fine. Clarke knows what she's doing."

Murphy scoffed, "Clarke's playing doctor. That kid has one more day. Tops. If, that is, somebody doesn't get to him first."

Elliot was one her feet in an instant, Murphy mimicking her actions. Her head spun at the sudden jolt but she was too angry to care. Stepping forward, she shoved the teen backwards.

"If you even think about doing something to him-"

"Enough!" Bellamy's voice pulled them apart. Elliot clenched her jaw, hands balling into fists as she stared up at the freckled male. He was staring back at her, moving towards them.

"Murphy, leave her alone." His eyes shifted towards the other boy, jutting his head back towards camp. Murphy's shoulders slumped, pissed that his leader had chosen to scold him over the shaking girl. Giving her one last look, he turned to walk back to camp. Elliot started to follow him, finding she had had enough air for the time being, but Bellamy stopped her. His eyes held some concern, something she wasn't used to seeing. Something she hadn't seen except when he was talking to Octavia.

"Do you wanna get out of here?" His tone was still hard, but quiet, low. He was being stern with her, but not an asshole.

She retracted from him, eyeing him suspiciously, "Are you hitting on me?"

His lips pursed together and he rolled his eyes, "No. I'm trying to help you out. You need to get away from that," His eyes glanced at the dropship, "And let off steam. We're about to head out to hunt. It's an invitation."

Elliot crossed her arms. She felt conflicted. On one hand, she had been adamant about helping with Jasper anyway she could. And if something happened while she was gone, she wouldn't be able to live with herself. On the other hand, hunting sounded, in an odd way, soothing. Sure she wouldn't be alone, but it would be quiet, she hoped. And then there was the new threat of Grounders, every turn could be into a trap.

"Come on, Half pint," She deadpanned at the sound of her given nickname, "We won't be gone long. You can let off some steam and be back to see if your friend wakes up or not."

Though the statement was a little harsh on her ears, he was being serious. Even she had thought it. "His name is Jasper. And he _is going_ to wake up."

Bellamy just rolled his eyes again, "Are you coming or not?"

* * *

The woods were almost silent once they were far enough away from the camp. Feet scuffing through dead leaves on the ground and what Elliot imagined were bugs were the only sound she could hear. When the two had joined the group, Atom seemed to be the only one to acknowledge Elliot's presence. She had stayed beside him for most of the hike, while Bellamy took up the front. From others in the camp, Elliot had learned about Atom and Octavia's short lived relationship that ended abruptly with Bellamy being an asshole of an older brother. She understood why he did what he did, but the extremity of his actions seemed just that; extreme. She felt sorry for Atom and she felt sorry for Octavia. Atom seemed nice enough, and probably would have been a good fit for the rebellious younger Blake if the situation had been different.

They had been walking for hours before Bellamy halted them, ducking into the foliage, eyes full of intent. Elliot scanned the area in front of them, finding the large black hog grazing just a few yards away. The group spread out, wrapping around the hog to trap it. Bellamy moved quickly, darting in front of Atom and Elliot, his hatchet held firmly in his grasp.

"This one's mine." He growled, inching closer.

From behind them a twig snapped and Bellamy twisted around. Heaving his weapon out of his hand, it landed with a dull thud into a tree trunk. His expression changed from alert to annoyance as he went to retrieve his weapon. Atom and Elliot followed behind, intrigued as to what spooked him.

"Who the hell are you?" He boomed at the small figure standing on the other side of the tree.

A lead weight dropped into Elliot's stomach as she darted forward, pushing past him towards the startled little girl.

"Charlotte! What the hell are you doing out here?" She sounded like a worried mother, pulling the girl into a tight embrace.

Charlotte wiggled out of her grasp but looked apologetic, "I saw you leaving and with that guy who's dying, I just-I couldn't listen anymore."

Elliot, again, pulled her into her arms, the terrifying thought of Bellamy's aim being just a tad further to the left sent chills down her back. But it wasn't. And Charlotte was fine.

"There's Grounders out here, it's too dangerous for a little girl." Atom's words were scolding but his tone was gentle. The way someone talks to a small child.

Charlotte's face hardened, "I'm not little." And Elliot cracked a smile, eyes shifting towards Bellamy. He was staring at the younger girl before a smile appeared on his face as well. He reached into his side pocket and brought out a short blade, handing it over to her.

"Okay then, but you can't hunt without a weapon. Ever killed anything before?"

Charlotte accepted the knife, but shook her head. Elliot felt uneasy as the young girl glanced sideways at her.

"Who knows?" She grinned, brushing it off, "Maybe you're good at it."

It wasn't long after that when the yellow fog appeared. It rolled over the hills slowly, menacingly, causing the group to cough and choke. Something about it was off. Pushing Charlotte in front of her, Elliot took off, the others following her closely. It seemed to be right on their heels no matter how fast they ran, wrapping around trees and gliding through the underbrush; it was everywhere.

"There are caves this way!" Bellamy pointed, taking the lead and guiding them down a ravine. Elliot pushed Charlotte further, praying that neither of them tripped up. Around her, the others had disappeared and she assumed the worse. This only pushed her further. Moments later, Bellamy was pulling them into a dark cave. Behind them, Atom screamed out for his friend but the fog had taken over, pushing Bellamy further back into the cave. They were trapped.

"How far does this go?" Elliot asked as they caught their breath. It might not have been the best idea running into the unexplored cave, but they didn't have much of a choice. And the fog was already seeping in as it surrounded them outside. They needed to get away from the entry but there was no telling what was hiding within the dark, cold cave around them.

"One way to find out." Bellamy replied, and began leading them further in.

The cave was actually a lot smaller than Elliot anticipated it to be. The ceiling was high, but they had only been walking for a few minutes before they came to a dead end. Above, Elliot could make out a hole that had once been another way in, but rocks had tumbled through, blocking it. Roots from a plant weaved their way around the ceiling, the radiation in them giving off a soft blue glow. It was all sort of breathtaking.

"I'd make myself comfortable. We'll be here a while." Bellamy informed, setting himself down on the ground. Charlotte found a perch in the cave wall, crossing her legs underneath her as she looked around. Elliot stayed where she stood.

"No, no, no. What about the others? The people back at camp?" _Jasper._ They couldn't stay here.

"There's nothing we can do. Not until the fog clears. Just sit down and try to relax for once, Elliot." Bellamy stretched, lacing his fingers behind his head.

Charlotte relaxed back against the cave wall, still perplexed by the roots on the ceiling. Huffing, Elliot moved over to her, sitting down on the floor at her feet. It was cool, soothing, and relief washed over her body. The three sat in silence for a long time before soft snores came from the youngest's direction. The other two shifted to look at her, finding her curled in a ball, sleeping soundly. Elliot shrugged off her jacket, draping it over Charlotte. She twisted, so she could comfortably lean against the perch Charlotte was one, facing Bellamy who sat at the end of her feet. He gave her a look before settling backwards and closing his own eyes.

Elliot's eyes had just fluttered closed when Charlotte let out a scream, thrashing briefly before sitting up. The two others were awake immediately, reaching out to comfort the scared girl.

"Charlotte, it's okay. It's okay. It was just a nightmare. You're okay." Elliot consoled, letting Charlotte grasp her hand.

The little girl wilted, shrinking back under the jacket draped over her body, "I'm sorry."

"Does it happen often?" Bellamy asked getting a nod from the girl, "What are you scared of?"

His voice wasn't hard. There wasn't even a hint of the threatening, leader Bellamy that Elliot was used to. If she didn't know him before, she would have pegged him as a good guy, not the jerk she had labeled him. Even his features were soft, staring at Charlotte with concern.

"You know what? It doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is what you do about it." He continued.

Charlotte furrowed her eyebrows, "But I'm asleep."

Bellamy shrugged, patting her leg gently, "Fears are fears. Slay your demons while you are awake, they won't be there to get you when you sleep."

Elliot didn't expect something like that to come from his mouth. But Bellamy seemed full of surprises at the moment and she brushed it off. And it seemed to be helping Charlotte, though she was still skeptic.

"You can't afford to be weak. Down here, weakness is death, fear is death." The opinion seemed unreasonable but coming from Bellamy made sense, and in a way he was right. If they were going to survive, they were going to have to become stronger. Wiser. If the Grounders decided to attack, they needed to be ready.

"Let me see that knife I gave you." Charlotte handed over the weapon, her speculation dwindling as she listened to the older boy.

"Now when you feel afraid, hold tight to that knife and say, 'screw you, I'm not afraid'."

An eyebrow raised on Charlotte's face, but she took back the blade, holding it tightly, "Screw you, I'm not afraid." Her voice was shaky. A reassuring squeeze from Elliot and she repeated, this time stronger, "Screw you, I'm not afraid."

Bellamy panted her leg once again, smiling before turning back around, "Slay your demons, kid. Then you'll be able to sleep."

It didn't take long for Charlotte to fall asleep again. She had fought it for a while, but soon her eyelids grew too heavy and she settled back into sleep. Elliot wasn't even close to being tired again. She wanted to get back to camp, back to Clarke and the others. She had gotten up twice but the fog was still there, blanketing everything in an eerie yellow stillness. When she returned the second time, arms wrapped around her cold frame, Bellamy was awake.

"Any change?" he asked, shifting so he was sitting up straighter.

Elliot shook her head, sitting down, "Not even close. Probably won't be until morning. Maybe even midday tomorrow."

She tried not to sound so worried but it seemed to be a force of habit now. She rubbed her face, slouching back against the wall. A chill made her body shake and she wrapped her arms around herself again. Beside her, Bellamy shifted. He was trying to get comfortable on the hard ground below them, but found no luck. Instead, he resorted to sitting up again, running a hand through his hair. He was just as uncomfortable as she was. Her eyes shifted to Charlotte, but the young girl was still curled in a deep sleep. Elliot reached up, making sure the young girl was still warm enough.

"She's a brave kid." Bellamy rasped beside her. He kept his voice, obviously low, turning to face the two girls. Elliot ran a hand over Charlotte's hair, smiling down at her before sitting back.

"She's got attitude. That's for sure." Ellie thought back to the snippy remark Charlotte had shot back at Atom when he criticized her and her face fell. She ducked her head, sitting back against the wall. _Atom._ She hoped he had found somewhere to hide. She had taken a liking to the teen. Even with him being one of Bellamy's henchmen and acting like a complete dick to some people, he was really nice once you got to know him. And smart.

Her thoughts wondered to the rest of the hunting party. Jones and the others had been right behind them. But once they reached the cave, they had disappeared. What about the people at the camp? Had the fog reached them? Did they get inside in time? Her worrying about everyone made her nauseous. She didn't know half the people in the camp, but the people she did know, she had grown to like pretty well. She had definitely formed a People I Give A Shit About list since the dropship landed. Starting with Monty and Jasper. Her face must have presented her worry because Bellamy nudged her with his foot, pulling her away from the thoughts in her head.

"You worry too much." He stated plainly, looking at her pointedly. She just nodded in agreement. He stared at her for a long moment. Her shoulders were tense, both from worry and cold, he figured, her eyebrows furrowed together as she sat thinking. Then his eyes began taking in everything else. Her hair framing her face in a mess of dark curls, falling out of the braid meant to keep it contained. She had a great body for being in solitary confinement for about four years, though it was on the thin side. She needed to eat more. She was a pretty girl once you got passed her attitude and persistence. But even that made her attractive. Bellamy's eyes narrowed as he looked her over one last time. The girl sitting across from him was definitely not the girl he had heard about on the Arc.

"What happened to you?" He blurted out. His eyes widened in regret, hoping she hadn't heard him. She blinked, gaze shifting from her hands and falling on something in front of her. She had heard him. An apology laid on the tip of his tongue. Aching to be let out, to try and fix his stupidity. _If she didn't hate you before, she sure as hell does now._

She looked at him, saw him sitting there in awkward regret and sighed. She figured someone would ask sooner or later. She had heard campers whispering about it before, every story different. It was only a matter of time before someone got the nerve to ask her themselves. She just didn't expect it to be this soon or for it to Bellamy of all people.

"A lot of things." She was vague, hoping it would suffice enough for him to drop it. Bellamy raised his eyebrows, signaling that he wasn't satisfied with the response. No one could ever leave well enough alone. Ever.

"I've heard more than one person in this camp talk about how dangerous you are. So far, all you've done is give out threats."

Elliot smirked at him, tilting her head to the side, "You don't know me, Blake."

Bellamy smirked back. She reminded him of his sister, young and naïve. Reckless and rebellious. But she was loyal. He'd seen it with Clarke, with Charlotte, and with the dying kid back at camp. She played a big front, but he _knew_ she wasn't dangerous. At least not to him. There was more to this girl than any of them understood.

"Don't push your limit, either," She mumbled, "Just because we're trapped in here for the night together doesn't mean we're friends. You're still at the top of my shit-list."

She blinked, "Well, after Murphy."

Curling up, she closed her eyes. She wasn't tired but she was done talking. Her mind was elsewhere at the moment. She was almost positive Bellamy didn't mean harm by his minor prodding but it had shaken her up. Now she wasn't sure if she was shaking from the cold or from anxiety. But soon exhaustion took over and she fell into a restless sleep.

 _"Elliot! Ellie! Look at me!" Larkin's came rushing at her, urgent eyes staring into her scared owns. There was a metallic scent in the air._

 _Blood. And a lot of it. Coating her arms and the front of her shirt. Larkin was covered in it as well. Beside them, her lifeless father lay sprawled out on the ground. He was dead. Her father was dead._

 _"You need to run, Ellie. You need to run and hide. Okay?" He was talking quickly, using a towel to wipe the drying blood from her hands._

 _Her body was shaking, tears running down her cheeks and falling to the floor. She wasn't even sure what had happened. Everything seemed to have happened so fast. One moment her father is yelling and screaming, coming at her with pure rage and the next moment he's on the ground, gasping and reaching towards her. The blood drained from her face._

 _"Ellie, do you understand me?" Larkin shook her, getting the young girl to look at him again, "They'll arrest you if they find out. You have to promise me, you won't let anyone know what happened," Elliot whimpered, "Promise me!"_

 _"But they'll kill you!" She panicked, "They'll float you, Larkin! What am I supposed to do then?"_

 _Larkin licked his lips, searching for a way to comfort the young girl, "You'll be fine. You'll find a way. It'll be okay," He moved away from her, stepping towards the closet on their left, "Change into this."_

 _She quickly did as he instructed, trying to avoid her father's dead gaze. Once her shirt was changed, she turned back to Larkin._

 _"Go to Armetta's. Don't tell anyone. Not Jasper. Not Monty. No one. Alright?"_

 _Her bottom lip quivered, "I'll never see you again."_

 _She stepped into his open arms, letting him hold her in a tight embrace before pushing her away, "Go. I'll be fine."_

 _He led her to the door, shutting it behind her before she could say anything else. She looked frantically down both ends of the corridors. No one knew about what had unfolded just behind the doors she stood against. She fought against tears, knowing that crying wasn't going to make any difference now. She examined her shaking hands in the fluorescent lights of the Arc, the blood under her fingernails taunting her. Slowly, she turned back towards the door. Larkin and her father were on the other side. Larkin, the closest thing she had had to a brother. To a father, even. Her mother's best friend. The man who had protected her and took care of her when her mother was sick and her father was drinking. Larkin, who was going to die. Die for her. Clenching her fists to her sides, she turned on her heel and began walking away._

 _Her entire journey through the Arc corridors seemed achingly long. She felt as if everyone was staring at her, knowing exactly what had happened. Knowing exactly what she was doing. Her mouth was dry and her breathing was rapid but she had to do it. Stopping outside the large doorway, she stared in at the people talking amongst each other._

 _Marcus Kane was the first to see the fourteen year old standing, shaking, by herself and moved away from his companions towards her. She couldn't look at him anymore and ducked her head. She was doing the right thing, she assured herself and looked back up at the man._

 _"Elliot? What's wrong?"_

 _Swallowing, she gave him an empty look, "I killed my father."_

She startled herself awake, blinking away the sleep in her eyes. Reality set back in as stiffness made itself apparent in her shoulders and legs. There was an awkward weight across the top half of her body and she looked down to see Bellamy's jacket draped over her arms. Turning to the older boy, she saw he was still sleeping soundly. Charlotte as well. Sitting forward, she stretched as best she could, folding the jacket in her hands and placing it beside its owner before moving towards the cave entrance. The familiar lush green growth and hot sun waited for her on the other side. She smiled, thanking God that it had passed. It was time to get back to the ship. Behind her, feet shuffled and she turned to see Bellamy and Charlotte coming to meet her.

"Is it clear?" Bellamy asked, shrugging on his jacket. Elliot nodded, her smile growing. She let him step around her, taking her jacket from Charlotte's outstretched hand. They stepped into the morning air, happy to be able to breath in the sweet scent again. Another wave of relief washed over Elliot as they were joined by other members of the group. She found herself searching through them, counting them off like a mother hen before stepping up to Bellamy's side.

"Where's Atom?"

The others searched the woods for the missing boy, hoping to see him peak over a hill or out from behind a tree, safe and alive like the rest of them. But when they came up with nothing, fear hung over them like a dark cloud.

"He probably made it back to camp." Bellamy reasoned. His voice and mannerisms conveyed no worry but Elliot could see it in his eyes. She would have called him out on it, if a scream hadn't interrupted her.

"Charlotte!" She was running before she knew she was, rushing towards the small girl standing over an embankment. Charlotte turned into her, face burying into her abdomen and soaking her shirt with tears. Elliot's face paled when she saw what she had screamed about. Bellamy pushed past her, stumbling down the embankment to where Atom's red and blistered body was lying. Elliot stepped away from Charlotte, following him.

Atom gasped and sputtered, begging them to kill him. Elliot's heart raced. Her breathing became heavy. His body was covered in the red blisters, some of which had started to pus and bleed. He was dying. There wasn't a doubt about it. Charlotte came up between the two, slowly handing her knife to Elliot.

"Go back to camp," Bellamy ordered, the others standing on the hill above them turned solemnly away, doing what their leader told them too, "You too, Charlotte."

The little girl paused for a moment, looking between the two then back at Atom.

"Go, Charlotte!" The older girl snapped causing both Charlotte and Bellamy to jump. Her eyes never left Atom as she sank to her knees. Behind her, Charlotte walked away, upset that she had snapped at her like that and Bellamy crouched down. There were tears in her eyes, her hand shaking wildly. She couldn't do it. She couldn't kill him. _She wasn't dangerous._

"I heard screams." Clarke came up from the other side, looking to the two for answers.

Bellamy was the one to respond, telling her what had happened in the last three minutes. Beside him, Elliot was still staring at the dying boy. Her head was pounding and the world around her seemed to move in slow motion. She couldn't do it. And it seemed like she didn't have to. Clarke reached forward, touching her hand tentatively before taking the knife from her. Elliot pulled her gaze away from Atom and looked to Clarke, a tear falling down her cheek before she could stop it.

"Just talk to him okay?" Clarke spoke softly.

Elliot nodded and took Atom's hand. He looked at her, choking and wheezing.

"Clarke's gonna help you, all right? She's good at this kind of stuff. Her mom was the best doctor on the Arc," She swallowed as Clarke leaned forward, "She knows what she's doing. She-" her words caught in her throat as Clarke slid the knife into Atom's throat, stilling the boy. Releasing his hand, Elliot rose to her feet. Bellamy stood with her, shooting a look to Clarke, and rested a hand on her shoulder. Elliot shook her head, brushing his hand away and wiped her sleeve across her face.

* * *

It was dark before they got back to camp. No one had said a word the entire time. The dark cloud that had formed itself over them had only grown darker. Clarke kept her pace even with Elliot, stealing glances at the expressionless girl as they lead the group home. Finn and Wells had joined the group as well, staying a few pace behind the girls. Behind them, Bellamy and Jones carried Atom's body in an old parachute. A jacket covered his face. Dread filled them all when someone announced their arrival.

"We've gotta get to Jasper. I'll need water to make the medicine." Clarke became a leader again, sending Finn off to get water and quickening her pace towards the drop ship.

Bellamy tugged a girl's arm. She had been on the hunting trip but Elliot had yet to learn her name. "Get Clarke whatever she needs." He instructed her. She gave him a curt nod and walked off.

"I better go get this grave dug." Wells spoke solemnly, squeezing Elliot's shoulder as he stepped around her and Bellamy.

Elliot felt Bellamy stiffen next to her as Octavia came rushing out of the dropship, relief washing over her face when she saw the returning group, "It's about time. They're gonna kill Jasper," Elliot's own body stiffened, "Did you get the medicine?"

Clarke nodded, grabbing at the younger girl to keep her away from what hid behind the others, "Come on, let's talk."

But Octavia just pushed her off, sensing the worry and stepped towards her brother and Elliot. Bellamy stepped forward, trying to stop his sister one last time but she shoved passed him as well, coming to stand by the dead body. She knelt down slowly, the camp falling silent around her. Pulling away the jacket, she revealed Atom's face. The redness had gone down. And now that his eyes were closed, he didn't look as terrifying. But he was still dead.

"There's nothing I could do." Bellamy spoke helplessly.

Octavia rose to her feet, anger behind the tears in her eyes. She shoved past him again, following Clarke into the dropship. Elliot glanced to Bellamy. He was standing defeated, looking after his little sister. Her hand came to rest on his arm before she even thought about it and she followed Clarke and Octavia into the drop ship.

"Lose anyone here?" Bellamy turned his attention to Murphy, pulling back into his leadership role.

Murphy shook his head which relieved the leader.

"What about Jasper?" He had heard Octavia talking about them killing Jasper. Or planning on killing Jasper. He knew Elliot did too.

"Still breathing," Murphy replied dryly, "I tried to take him out, but your psycho little sister-"

Before he could finish, Bellamy had him by the collar, lifting him off the ground a bit in pure rage. Murphy froze at the attack, struggling and fighting against his attacking only briefly.

"My what? My what?" Bellamy's voice was loud and menacing. Terrifying even.

But Murphy wasn't scared. He was just angry that Bellamy had flipped on him. Angry that Bellamy had called him out in front of the other campers.

"Your little sister." He muttered, feeling like a scolded child.

Bellamy tightened the grip on his collar, pulling him closer, "Yeah that's right. My little sister. Got anything else you want to say about her?"

Murphy shook his head, knowing an argument wouldn't be worth it, and apologized. Bellamy tossed him aside, realizing the others were still standing around him. Composing himself, he turned and ordered for Atom to be taken away, and turned back to Murphy. Keeping his voice low, he threatened, "Stay away from Jasper. And, your best bet would be to stay away from Elliot as well."

Murphy scoffed, "I'm not scared of that bitch."

"Then be scared of me." And then he was walking away, leaving Murphy to stand embarrassed as the others went back to what they had been before.

On the drop ship, Clarke was giving Jasper the medicine as quickly as she could without rushing the still unconscious boy. The usual others sat, surrounding him. Elliot was surprised to see he had somewhat improved. His fever had broken and no more groans echoed through the walls. He looked like he was just sleeping now. Clarke had apologized about Atom to Octavia and the young girl seemed to take it better now than earlier.

"I guess we're gonna have to get used to people dying down here, aren't we?" Everyone looked at each other. But the dark cloud was dwindling. There was light peeking through, Elliot could feel it. She watched Octavia lean down and whisper to Jasper, dabbing at the sweat on his neck.

Once Jasper was given medicine, Clarke excused herself, saying she needed to go find Wells. When Elliot asked why she was actually going out to find the teen, Clarke just responded with, "He deserves an apology." And a smile. Elliot decided to leave it alone, eyeing the bottle of liquor Finn pulled from his jacket. She joined the others by Monty's work space. Ten minutes later, Jasper woke up. Jokingly asking for a sip of whatever they were drinking. The four leapt their feet, rushing to his side in excitement.

"Let's start with the soft stuff," Finn placed the water canteen to Jasper's lips, who accepted happily, "Welcome back, buddy?"

"Was that a dream or did I get speared?" Jasper winced in pain as he shifted but Elliot could care less. He was a live and that's all that mattered.

Behind her, Clarke had returned, smiling gratefully at the boy laying on the ground, "You'll have a very impressive scare to prove it."

He smiled back at her, just as grateful, "My savior."

The word brought smiles to the others face and Clarke kneeled down beside him, "Thank you for not dying. I don't think I could've taken that today."

Jasper nodded, before cracking another joke about not dying tomorrow if it was okay with everyone. The others laughed and Octavia reached out to squeeze the boy's leg. He shifted to look at her, smiling widely.

"Oh hello."

He fell asleep after that, his breathing normal, the sweat on his forehead gone, the pain in his face gone. He was going to be okay. And it was because of Clarke. Elliot watched the girl clean up the dropship, removing dirty rags and folding clean ones. The blonde caught her gaze, smiling kindly at her. Elliot mimicked the action. _You did good, Clarke._

That night they all slept soundly, Jasper being alive taken a big weight off many of their shoulders. The camp was quiet for the first time in three days, beside the crackling fire that was kept low by whoever was keeping watch that night.

Just before dawn, Wells relieved Elliot of her shift, asking her how Jasper was doing.

"He's good. It'll take a while for it to heal, but he's alive," She sighed, "And that's all that really matters." There was a comfortable silence as they switched places, Wells sitting himself down on the long fallen tree.

"What about you and Clarke? Finn told me about what happened in the car. Clarke said you deserved an apology?"

Wells smiled, nodding. He was happy. Like his own weight had been lifted from his shoulders. "Yeah, we're good."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that," Giving him one last look, she yawned and turned away, "Good night, Wells."

Shuffling into the drop ship, she found a comfortable enough spot on the main level, curling up in the corner. She was falling asleep when Charlotte had joined Wells on lookout. She was asleep when Charlotte stabbed Wells in the neck.

* * *

 **This chapter is a little bit longer than the others, but I tried to put in some flashbacks, give you guys a look into Jasper, Monty, and Elliot's relationship before they were all arrested. As well as the day she got arrested. There's also more of her and Bellamy. As always hope you guys enjoyed. There weren't any new reviews but a lot of people favorited and followed, so I'm not complaining. Glad to see people are enjoying it! Xx**


	4. Chapter 4

Finn was the one to find Wells's body just before the rest of the one hundred woke up. He had been stabbed in the neck, but by the three missing fingers had tried to put up a fight. The campers had labeled it as a Grounder attack. By midday, the entire camp was working to get the walls up. Besides the shifting glances towards the perimeter of the camp and towards Clarke whenever she made herself visible to the others, the camp was pretty much just like it had always been. There was laughing and teens flirted with one another and they all just kept working. As much as Elliot hated to admit it, Wells's death had made things better. Now things were actually getting done.

A lead weight sat in her stomach as she knelt in front of Monty. He had asked her for her wrist band, explaining to her why he needed it. And after an entire night of picking at it, she offered it up kindly. It stung as he dug the knife up under the bracelet, twisting it as gently as he could. She hissed in pain and it snapped off. Small blue lights glowing from the prongs that had been stabbing into her wrist for the past two weeks before fading away to nothing. A defeated sigh came from Monty's lips and Elliot tried to feel bad. But her mind was elsewhere. She had seen Wells just before he died. _Why did the Grounder wait until Wells was there? The sun was coming up, people were waking up. They could have easily been seen. And why Wells? It would have made more sense if it had been someone from the first group. Someone who saw what happened to Jasper. Or maybe it was because Wells had gone on Jasper's search party. Killed that giant ass cat._ Elliot couldn't find a reasonable enough answer as to why Wells was the one to be killed and it was driving her insane.

She mumbled a sorry to Monty, rubbing her bleeding wrist and stood up. He just waved her off, busy thinking and working. When she turned around, Clarke and Finn were stepping inside. Clarke walked determined towards Monty, pausing only briefly as her eyes fell to Elliot's wrist. Elliot just shook her head.

"I'll take a look at that in a minute." Clarke mumbled and continued to Monty.

Elliot glanced at Finn who merely rolled his eyes at the blonde's actions. Attention back on her wrist, Elliot stepped around him and outside into the camp. People were working all around her, carrying logs, building tents. It was the most uniform thing she had seen them do since they got here. On a higher point in the camp, the sheep dogs, Bellamy and Murphy, were watching over their little flock of sheep, making sure things stayed orderly. Elliot gave Bellamy a small smile when she caught him looking back at her before moving towards where Charlotte was stationed.

The young girl seemed unusually quiet today. Though she really wasn't much of a talker anyway. But her mind seemed just as distracted as Elliot's. A smile ghosted her lips when the older teen joined her and it eased Elliot's nerves. She wrapped her wrist in a piece of cloth she had picked up on her way to the younger girl, covering it from anything potentially infecting it and began helping her tie wires from the drop ships around a group of logs. Neither of them talked, but it was a comfortable silence and the work kept them busy. They both looked up when a teenager carrying one end of a large log, dropped to the ground. Elliot stepped around Charlotte to help him up, but Murphy's voice stopped her.

"You think the Grounders are just gonna sit around and wait for us to finish the wall? Maybe we should let the little girl do the lifting for ya, huh?" He pointed towards Charlotte, who swallowed at the sudden attention.

The teen panted from where he sat on his knees and waved Murphy off, "I just need some water, ok? Then I'll be fine."

Murphy started to say something, stepping up to the teenager when Bellamy approached, ordering him to get the kid water. As Murphy sulked off, Bellamy glanced to Charlotte.

"Hey, you got this?"

The young girl wasted no time rushing over to lift the log up and Elliot hurried after her. There was no way in hell that little girl was going to pick up that log. It probably weighed more than she did. The fact that Bellamy had even asked was unbelievable and Elliot wanted to hit the guy. But her anger subsided when he reached for the girl, stopping her.

"I'm just kidding." He was smiling at her, genuinely, which she returned. He hoisted the log up onto his shoulder, winking at Elliot before walking away. Elliot shook her head, and placed an arm on Charlotte's shoulder.

"Let's get back to work, kiddo."

Moments later, Murphy returned to the teen still kneeling on the ground. Elliot could barely make out the asshole unzipping his pants. Dropping her things, she started again towards Murphy, this time Charlotte reached out and stopped her, the young girl's eyes telling her it wasn't worth it. Staring daggers in Murphy, Elliot returned to what she was doing. It wasn't long before her attention was caught by the distraught looks on Octavia and Jasper's faces. They had just appeared from outside the walls, and looked a little petrified.

"Charlotte, I'll be right back, okay." Giving a gentle tug to the girl's braid, Elliot hurried towards the two.

She reached Jasper first, grabbing at his hand to stop him. He jumped, whirling around to face her with wide eyes. Her hands raised into the air in surrender and she took a startled step back.

"What's going on with you two?" She asked, eyes darting to Octavia briefly, then back to Jasper.

Octavia just grabbed her arm, pulling her towards where Clarke was standing, talking with a couple of other teens. The look of worry on Jasper and Octavia's face and the look of pure confusion on Elliot's was enough for Clarke to step away from the conversation.

"Where's Bellamy. We need to talk." Octavia spoke hushly, making sure no one else around could hear.

"I know where he is. I'll go get him and meet you guys in his tent, alright?" Elliot stepped around the group, hurrying off in the direction Bellamy went, anxiety running through her entire body.

Bellamy was on the far end of the campsite, behind the dropship, holding up a log as one of his buddies secured it in. Elliot scurried through the working teens, coming up beside him.

"I need you to come with me."

He looked at her with surprise, her tone indicating something was wrong. Ordering another kid to come and take his place, he let her lead him back the way she had come. She ignored the slight pressure on her lower back as his hand pushed her forward faster. When they reached the tent, Octavia dropped the heavy object onto the table.

"We found it beside a couple of Wells's fingers outside the fences." Jasper explained. He was sweating and shaking and all together just a mess. Octavia rubbed his arm, trying to comfort him.

"Why were you outside the walls?" Elliot asked. She was actually pretty impressed Octavia had gotten Jasper out there, whereas she had trouble getting him to sleep out in a tent like the others. It had taken tons of persuasion and Monty's acceptance to share a tent with him for Jasper to even consider it. With a little more pushing, Jasper finally settled into it.

"I was trying to Jasper used to it again. We found them just a couple feet from the walls." Octavia explained, her eyes on Clarke, who was examining the knife.

Clarke's eyebrows were furrowed in thought, turning the knife over and over in her hands before looking up at the others, "This knife was made from metal from the dropship."

"What do you mean?" Jasper's voice was meek.

"Who else knows about this?" _Metal from the dropship._ That meant someone inside the camp killed Wells. Which only narrowed it down slightly. There were plenty of people in this camp that hated Wells's guts, but there were plenty of people in this camp that wouldn't do anything more about it than talk shit on him.

"Clarke?" Jasper was still trying to get an answer from the blonde.

Elliot crossed her arms, "It means the Grounders didn't kill Wells. It was one of us." There was a moment of silence between the five of them, each looking at one another.

"So there's a murderer in the camp?" Jasper's words made Elliot shudder.

But Bellamy's statement made her feel nauseous, "There's more than one murderer in this camp," His eyes fell on her, not in an accusing way, but more of a sympathetic glance, "This isn't news. We need to keep it quiet."

But Clarke had different plans, a look of anger had fallen over her face and she stomped towards the tent entrance. Bellamy stepped in her way, blocking her from going any further.

"Be smart about this," He kept his voice low, "Look at what we've achieved. The walls, the patrols. Like it or not, thinking the grounders killed Wells is good for us."

Clarke was too angry to care, rolling her eyes, she spat back, "Oh, good for you, you mean. What? Keep people afraid and they'll work for you? Is that it?"

Bellamy crossed his arms and made himself looking bigger than he was, his intimidation tactics weren't working on the girl, "It's good for all of us. Fear of the Grounders is building that wall. And besides, what are you gonna do? Just walk out there and ask the killer to step forward? You don't even know whose knife that is."

Clarke raised an eyebrow, preceding her prior level of attitude and held up the knife, "J.M. John Murphy."

This time Elliot stepped in, "Or John Mbege. Or hell, anyone. Just because it has initials on it, doesn't mean someone else didn't have it." She didn't want to side against Clarke, but the girl was acting irrationally. And granted she had good reason to, but this wasn't going to solve anything.

Clarke sent her a glare, showing that she was pissed Elliot wasn't with her on this and just shook her head.

"I know who it was. The people have a right to know too." And then she was gone, the others hurrying after her.

Murphy was yelling at someone again, finding his leader nowhere around gave him the idea that he was in charge. Mbege was at his side, as per usual, shoving the teen back. Clarke's speed picked up as she shoved at Murphy, gritting her teeth in anger.

"Whoa, what's your problem?" He asked, taking a step towards her.

Elliot stepped up behind her, still trying to change her mind, "We can talk about this in private. It doesn't have to be like this, Clarke."

"Recognize this?" Clarke completely ignored her, shoving Murphy's knife in his face.

It took him a second to focus on the item, leaning away from the blade pointed just above his nose, "It's my knife. Where did you find it?"

"Where you dropped it after you killed Wells!" _Oh, goddamit._ Elliot held her breath, expecting Murphy to lunge forward but instead he looked confused.

"Where I what?" He looked at the others as they crowded around, "The Grounders killed Wells, not me."

"I know what you did and you're gonna pay for it." Clarke spat. There was no fear in her body language or tone and Elliot was a little afraid of what the girl might do but she kept quiet. Her words were just going to be ignored anyway.

Murphy turned to Bellamy for back up, asking if he believed what Clarke was accusing him of. Bellamy just looked away. The only person Murphy had was Mbege, and even he was standing to the side in disbelief.

Clarke pushed him further, her blood boiling, "You threatened to kill him. We all heard you. You hated Wells."

Murphy scoffed, "Plenty of people hated Wells. His father was the chancellor that locked us up."

"Yeah but you're the only one who got in a knife fight with him." Clarke's voice cracked and Elliot stepped forward to pull her away. Clarke didn't fight but kept her eyes glued to Murphy. He took a step forward, getting in her face now, "Yeah and I didn't kill him then either."

"Tried to kill Jasper too." Octavia added, only fueling the rest of the crowd.

If it was under any other kind of circumstance, Elliot would have laughed at Jasper's expression.

Murphy shook his head, "Come on, this is ridiculous. I don't have to answer to you," He pointed at Clarke, stepping around her, "I don't have to answer to anyone."

"Come again?" The crowd fell silent. Bellamy stood with his arms crossed, watching Murphy with raised eyebrows.

Murphy cowered, stepping towards his leader, "Look, I'm telling you man. I didn't do this."

There was a brief second where Elliot thought Bellamy believed him before he reminded Murphy that it was his knife they had found. But there was something in Murphy's tone. In the way he was acting, begging for someone to believe him that made Elliot second guess Clarke's accusation. Maybe Murphy really didn't kill Wells. Maybe they had just ruined everything.

"Is this the kind of society that we want?" Clarke dove into a speech, "You say there should be no rules. Does that mean that we can kill each other without punishment?"

Murphy lunged at Clarke again, sneering "I already told you, I didn't kill you," Elliot stepped between the two tentatively, watching as Murphy's eyes shifted from Clarke to her, "Why not ask Half Pint here? She was the last one to see him before he died."

This time Clarke grabbed Elliot's arm. It was reassuring touch, letting the girl know she wasn't thought of as a "suspect". And it seemed like the others thought the same as well, because from within the ground some kid yelled out that they should float him. A chorus of agreement echoed in return.

"That's not what I'm saying." Clarke argued, stepping around Elliot towards the teen.

Elliot followed her, adding in her own two cents, "If we kill him, it doesn't make us any better."

"Revenge isn't justice." Clarke sighed.

But the girls weren't getting through to him. Instead, he just smiled, throwing a fist into the air and began chanting 'float him'. The others joined in and the circle seemed to close in around the three. In a second, Murphy was lunging at the instigating teen and then he was on the ground. Other teens punched and kicked at him, beating him into the ground. Elliot fought against them, using what strength she had to pull people away. But she was making no progress. Soon Murphy's hands were bound behind his back and he was gagged. With a forcible kick from someone, he was sent rolling down the side of the hill. Teens were on him almost immediately again, pulling him to his knees. Elliot watched as a couple tossed a rope around a high tree branch, creating a loop at one end. As they slipped the knot around Murphy's neck, she looked away. Her eyes landed on Charlotte not ten feet from her and she rushed to the little girl's side. She tried to cover her eyes, but Charlotte fought against her. Neither could look away. In front of them, Clarke was begging Bellamy to make them stop. Begging him to talk to the other campers.

"I know you're not a killer!" She shouted as he stepped towards Murphy. The group was chanting his name. Shouting for him to do the honors of killing the captured teen.

Bellamy seemed conflicted. He looked throughout the crowd. To the people shouting his name. To Clarke begging him to stop and think. To his sister, who stood beside Monty and Jasper. And then to Elliot and Charlotte, both watching with silent expressions. Clenching his jaw, he turned and kicked the box out from underneath Murphy's feet. The boy dropped down, but unfortunately it wasn't enough to snap his neck. Elliot again tried to cover Charlotte's eyes as the boy thrashed around, trying to break free. Bellamy was rushing at Clarke, screaming at her, blaming her for Murphy's punishment, when Finn came running through the crowd.

"Cut him down!" He turned to Charlotte, shoving her some, "Charlotte get out of here now!"

A coldness washed over Elliot as she watched Finn run over to help Murphy. Charlotte pulled away from her grip, crying.

"Just stop okay."

Elliot couldn't look at her. The little girl's voice loud in her ears and she started to sweat. _No. Please, no._

"Murphy didn't kill Wells." _No, no, no, no._ "I did!"

In an instant everything fell silent. People around them stopped chanting. Clarke raced forward and cut Murphy down. Elliot wanted to throw up. Her entire body was cold, palms clammy as she blinked. In seconds, Finn was pulling Charlotte away from her, pushing through the crowd. Clarke followed behind him quickly with Bellamy on her heels. He paused in front of Elliot, grabbing her forearms and turning her to face him. She just blinked again, the same lost gaze on her eyes as she looked up at him, he was talking to her, but his words fell deaf to her ears. When he stepped away from her, jogging after Finn and the girls, she followed.

* * *

"Why Charlotte?" Bellamy asked, pacing his tent and staring the young girl down.

Charlotte hands wrung together, turning red from the constant friction. She was scared. Upset. Guilty. Every ounce of her being was guilty.

"I was just trying to slay my demons, like you told me." She whimpered in response, throwing the blame onto Bellamy.

"What the hell is she talking about?" Clarke growled, stopping the older boy from pacing.

He shook his head, waving her off, "She misunderstood me," and turned to the young girl, "Charlotte, that is no what I meant."

From outside the tent, Murphy shouted out. The rest of the camp was just outside the tent, waiting and watching what would happen next. Murphy was at the front of the group. He knew better than to trespass into Bellamy's tent but he was just waiting for the little girl to appear. Pacing back and forth like a predator hunting prey.

"Ellie, please don't let them hurt me." Charlotte stepped towards Elliot and instinctively she draped an arm around her shoulder.

She didn't want to believe it. Not Charlotte. Anyone but Charlotte. This couldn't be happening. Charlotte was a _good_ kids. As good as any of the criminals sent down here could be. She was arrested for attacking a guard. A little thirteen year old girl, distraught that her parents had been killed and now their things were being taken away. She wasn't a killer. She couldn't be. _But she was._ But even with this realization, Elliot couldn't bring herself to hate the kid. She had grown too fond of her, taken her in, took care of her. It wasn't just about Charlotte being young and naïve, Elliot saw her as a friend. Family.

"We have to do something." Her voice was pleading and raspy from being silent for too long.

The other three looked between each other, no one saying anything in return.

Elliot gritted her teeth, fists clenching, "Now you stay quiet."

"Those are your boys out there." Finn jutted at Bellamy.

The older boy raised a surprised eyebrow, crossing his arms, "This is not my fault," using his eyes to point towards Clarke, he added, "If she had listened to me, those idiots would still be building the wall?"

"You want to build a society, Princess? Let's build a society. Bring her out!" Murphy's voice only made things worse. Elliot started for the tent entrance, ready to deck the son of a bitch in the face, when Bellamy stopped her. Pulling her away from the entrance, he turned to Charlotte.

"Charlotte, hey, it's gonna be ok. Just stay with them," Turning back to Elliot, he whispered low, "Get her someplace safe. I'll deal with them." And then he was gone, disappearing outside into the group.

Finn pulled up the back of the tent, quietly ushering the girls outside. They could hear Murphy and Bellamy going at it, yelling and arguing with one another. Elliot stayed close to Charlotte, a hand wrapped tightly around the young girl's wrist. With Finn leading the way, and Clarke bringing up the rear, they snuck out of the wall of the camp and passed the growing graveyard into the woods without anyone noticing.

* * *

They had been running for what felt like hours, keeping as quiet and low as they could. Elliot stayed behind Charlotte most of the way, her knife in her hand and her eyes scanning the trees. The threat of being attacked by Grounders made her more nervous than the threat of Murphy and his goons following behind them. The sun was setting and the trees were getting darker. It would make it easier for them to hide but harder for them to see. Their best bet was to find someplace soon.

"It's going to be night soon, Finn. Where are we going?" Clarke was beside Charlotte now, keeping a close eye on her. Finn was still leading the small group, pulling them further and further away from camp.

"At least say you have a plan and we're not just wandering aimlessly through the woods." Elliot added from behind.

Finn nodded, stopping, "I have a plan."

Elliot watched Charlotte sidestep into Clarke's side, her hand reaching for the older girl's. Clarke pulled away immediately, turning on the young girl.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Just because we saved you doesn't mean you're forgiven. Got it?"

Charlotte stumbled back into Elliot, who placed a hand on her shoulder. Clarke was right, but Charlotte was scared. And they were trying to help her. Finn caught the blonde's attention, shaking his head at her statement.

"She's just a kid." He murmured, glancing at the other two girls behind them.

Clarke's eyes widened in annoyance, "She's a killer," Again she turned around to Charlotte, "You killed someone, Charlotte! Ended his life. Did you stop to think about that for even one second?"

Elliot pushed her away gently, motioning for her to stop interrogating Charlotte. But Clarke continued.

"Look at me! You can't just kill someone to make yourself feel better."

Again Elliot pushed Clarke away, this time harder. The blonde rose to retaliate when Murphy's voice shouted behind them.

"Charlotte! They can't save you!"

Clarke reached out, pulling Charlotte in front of her once again, "We should run."

Finn was still standing in the same spot, staring out at the spot Murphy's voice came from. He nodded and bent down, "Yeah that's one way to go," from where she stood, Elliot could barely make out the heavy, round door, Finn lifted up, "I like my plan better. Get in."

Charlotte and Clarke scrambled in, disappearing from sight. Finn waved for Elliot to follow but she just shook her head. Leaving the door, he hurried over to her.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Just watch out for her okay? Please, Finn." Elliot's voice cracked, "Promise me, you'll look out for her."

Finn shook his head, not fully comprehend what Elliot was meaning. He reached out for her, like he would drag her into the bunker if he had too. She stepped away from him, and sniffled.

"I'll draw them off. They know she'd with me, if they see me, they'll think she's there too. Just keep her safe, and I'll keep them away. Please, Finn."

And then she was running, making sure her foot falls were heavy and she hit every branch and rustling leaf she could. Finn watched her for a moment before turning back to the bunker and dropping inside.

* * *

Elliot's idea had worked. Murphy and his followers had been running after her for a while now. She was getting winded, lungs and legs burning, but she kept going, getting as far away from Finn's hiding place as she could. But it wouldn't last for long. It was getting dark out, either she was going to get tired or the group following her was. And what were they going to do after tonight? They couldn't hide Charlotte forever. And Murphy wasn't just going to forget about it. Her thoughts were cut short as she collided into someone. She scrambled backwards, stumbling to get her footing again, when Bellamy reached out and stopped her from falling on her ass. He steadied her before becoming alert.

"What are you doing here? Where are the others?" He asked, glancing around the dark trees.

Elliot shook her head, panting for a moment before responded. "They're- they're hiding. I've been leading them aw-"

"Murphy!" Charlotte's voice ripped through the air and Elliot's blood ran cold. She pushed passed Bellamy, taking off faster than she had been in the direction Charlotte's voice came from. Bellamy stayed right behind her, even taking the lead when they spotted the little girl. He caught her just before she could shout out again, covering her mouth and pulling her behind the safety of a tree. She fought against him briefly before recognizing her captor.

Elliot came up beside her, pulling her away from his grasp and into her arms, "Charlotte, what the hell are you doing out here! Where are Clarke and Finn?"

"Charlotte! You can't hide forever!" Murphy shouted out.

Charlotte wiggled out of Elliot's grasp, turning like she was about to run towards the angry teen but Bellamy grabbed her, pulling her in the other direction. Charlotte fought against him, screaming for him to let her go.

"We're trying to help you!" He growled back, jerking her to a stop.

She stared up at him angrily, "I'm not your sister! Just stop helping me," She took off again, this time screaming out to Murphy.

Again Bellamy grabbed for her, "Are you trying to get us killed?"

Elliot watched as the two fought against each other, Charlotte finally giving up and sniffling, "Just go okay? I'm the one they want."

Feeling her heart tighten, Elliot moved beside Bellamy, leaning down to be eye level with Charlotte, "Listen to me. I'm not going to leave you. I promised nothing bad was going to happen to you. And I mean it. Whether you like it or not."

"Please, Ellie." The young girl begged, turning again to shout out at Murphy.

Quickly and swiftly, Bellamy flung the girl over his shoulder, urging Elliot to run again. She pushed away Charlotte's screams to Murphy and raced forward. When Bellamy's speed slowed, she switched him places, pushing him forward and keeping herself between him and Murphy's group. Her heart sank as they came up on a cliff. Before they had any time to rethink their situation, Murphy had appeared out of the woods, coming to stand alongside Elliot.

"You can't fight all of us. Give her up." He growled at the boy guarding Charlotte.

Bellamy shifted his weight, ready to fight if he had to, "Maybe not but I guarantee, I'll take a few of you with me."

"Bellamy, stop." Elliot's voice was softer and weaker than she had expected but she was drained physically and mentally. And they were cornered. Behind her, Clarke and Finn appeared.

"This has gone too far," She continued, turning to Murphy, "Just calm down. We'll figure something out. Talk about this."

She barely had time to register Murphy tossing his torch away and pulling her towards him. Her back pressed tightly to his chest and a knife digging into her throat, "I'm sick of listening to people talk."

"Let her go." Finn stepped forward.

Murphy only dug the knife further into her neck, "I will slit her throat." Elliot could feel blood running down her neck and tried to steady her breathing.

Charlotte whimpered behind Bellamy, begging Murphy not to hurt her. Murphy's grip loosened around Elliot's neck as his attention adverted back to Charlotte.

"Don't hurt her? Ok, I'll make you a deal. You come with me right now, I will let her go."

Elliot and Charlotte's eyes locked together. Both were crying, shaking, terrified of what would happen. When Charlotte took a step forward, Elliot fought against Murphy.

"Don't do it, Charlotte. Don't do it, Charlotte!" She begged, ignoring how frantic and pitiful she sounded.

Bellamy held Charlotte back, restricting her from going anyway. He turned to give Murphy a warning look.

"This is not happening."

Charlotte stepped away from Bellamy's outstretched arm, "I can't let any of you get hurt anymore. Not because of me. Not after what I did."

Turning around, she ran from Bellamy, leaping off the cliff before he had a chance to even turn around. Clarke shouted out, racing towards the edge of the cliff and dropped to her knees. Murphy was just as shocked as the rest of them, his arms dropping away from Elliot. She couldn't move. Her eyes glued to the empty spot Charlotte had once been standing in. She didn't even move when Bellamy came charging at Murphy, knocking him onto his back and began swinging at his face. Her head turned when Clarke screamed at Bellamy to stop, watching Finn pull him off the bleeding teen.

"We don't decide who lives and dies. Not down here!" Clarke placed herself in front of Bellamy, blocking him from getting to Murphy again.

"So help me God," Bellamy growled, "If you say the people have a right to decid-"

Clarke shook her head, stopping him, "No, I was wrong before, ok? You were right. Sometimes it's dangerous to tell people the truth. But if we are gonna survive down here, we can't just live by whatever the hell we want. We need rules."

Bellamy pursed his lips, clenching his teeth together, "And who makes those rules, huh? You?

Clarke shook her head again, "For now on, we make the rules. Ok?"

Bellamy looked to Murphy on the ground, "So what then, we just him back and pretend like it never happened?"

"No!" Clarke turned to look at the bloody teen as well, all eyes on her, waiting for whatever idea she was coming up with. Look back at Bellamy, she said softly, "We banish him."

There was another brief pause before Bellamy pulled Murphy to his feet, dragging him to the edge of the cliff. Clarke called out to him, but he ignored her. Holding Murphy threateningly close to the edge, he spoke loud and clear enough for the others to hear.

"If I ever catch you near camp, we'll be back here. Understand?" Tossing him back to the ground, Bellamy returned to the others. He stopped beside Elliot, keeping his voice as stern as he could, "As for the four of you. You can come back and follow me, or go off with him to die. Your choice."

There wasn't a chance for discussion. Instead, Bellamy stormed off into the darkness of the trees. Slowly, the others began following him, leaving Finn and Elliot to stand over Murphy's bruised and beaten body. Finn dropped his own knife down beside the teen, staying quiet as he took Elliot's hand. Gently, he coaxed her to follow him and the others. His hand stayed tightly wrapped around hers as they returned to camp.

* * *

Most of the others were waiting for them when they returned. Clarke and Bellamy ordered everyone to gather around so they could explain what had happened since they left the camp. They didn't have to blatantly tell the camp Charlotte was dead, most already understood. But they explained why Murphy had been banished and warned the others against the idea of "floating" people. Once everyone agreed to understanding, they returned to what they had been doing before.

"Let me take a look at that." Clarke spoke softly to Elliot as she took her hand, pulling her towards the dropship. Elliot stayed silent but followed behind her without any fuss. She didn't flinch when Clarke brushed at the healing wound on her wrist, cleaning away dirt and dried blood. She didn't flinch when she dabbed at the bleeding cut on her neck. Clarke didn't expect her to say or do anything and she was startled when the brunette sucked in a deep breath.

"I promised her nothing would happen." Her voice was dry and low. If things hadn't been so quiet around the camp, Clarke wouldn't have been able to hear her.

The blonde stiffened, guilt washing over her. She reached up, taking Elliot hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze, "It was my fault. I shouldn't have gone about things the way I did. I was wrong."

Elliot shook her head, looking at her with sympathy, "There was no way to know any of this would happen."

"But I should have been more careful. I wasn't thinking. I just want this place to be safe. So we can build a better society. I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

Elliot snorted, looking down at her boots, "Some society."

Clarke didn't know what to say. She watched Elliot, waiting for the girl's expression to become angry. For her to lash out and spit horrible things at her. But instead Elliot gave her a kind, soft look.

"A lot of factors led up to this. You don't have to take all the blame, Clarke. You did what you thought was right. We all did. Sometimes, we're wrong," She squeezed Clarke's hand and rose to her feet, "Don't put so much weight on your own shoulders. We should all bear it."

Leaving Clarke still squatted on the ground, she stepped out of the dropship. Tears stung her eyes, and she got as far away from the rest of the group as she could. Hurrying behind the dropship, she stared up at the moon.

She hadn't cried in a long time. Not since she was arrested. But her breathing was unsteady and her hands were shaking and she promised she wouldn't let anything happen to that little girl and now Charlotte was dead and now she could stop the tears from falling or the sob that escaped her throat. Covering her mouth, she tried to calm herself down. She blinked away the last of the tears, wiping them away with her shirt sleeve. Waiting until her breathing had slowed again, and she was composed enough to eat something and get to her tent before anyone asked questions, she turned around.

Bellamy stood just a few feet away, hands stuffed into his pockets, eyes filled with worry. She sniffled, crossing her arms.

"How long had you been standing there?" Her voice was sharp and filled with annoyance. She had gotten away so that no one would see her cry, not so someone would follow her, let alone Bellamy.

"Longer than you'd like." He replied. He was speaking to her softly, like he did with his sister or with Charlotte. It only annoyed her more. He was pitying her. She hated it.

"You shouldn't eavesdrop."

Bellamy stepped up to her. His movement was slow and careful like it was incredibly awkward for him to even be here.

"Yeah, well, you shouldn't be back here crying by yourself." An eyebrow raised.

She bite her cheek, looking away from him. She could feel the familiar sting of tear returning and blinked it away. When she looked back at him, his expression had changed. It wasn't worry anymore, wasn't pity like she suspected. It was sadness, sympathy. Her vision blurred as tears returned, this time slipping down her cheeks before she could stop them. She didn't want him to see her like this. She didn't want anyone to see her like this. All she could do was shake her head at him, words getting caught in her throat. But instead of thinking any less of the upset teen, Bellamy simply took another step forward and pulled her into his arms. She was surprised by the sudden warmth of his chest, his arms wrapped around her small frame. His heart was a muffled beat against her ear and it surprisingly soothed her. A week ago, they were at each other's throats mostly, and now she was in his arms. _Crying_ in his arms. The warmth reminded her of something. Something she wasn't quite sure of. But the feeling was familiar. Distant but familiar. Taking a deep breath, she relaxed and closed her eyes.

* * *

 **So there is chapter four! This was kind of a hard chapter to write just because there was a lot happening and a lot of emotion. If it doesn't make sense or something, let me know. I went through and edited it twice but it's always nice to have other eyes looking through it. As usual, hope you guys enjoyed it and thank you to everyone reading. Updates might start moving to every other week, just because I'm starting my second semester of college on Monday and wont have a lot of time to write between school, work, and homework. But I will keep updating, just wanted to give you guys a heads up.**

 **Also not sure how I feel about the last chapter. I might come back and edit it later, or I might leave it. I'm not sure. Tell me what you guys think. Xx**


	5. AN

**Hey guys, sorry this isn't a new chapter. College has been a lot more hectic that I expected it to be as well as one of my co-workers quitting so some of us had to pick up a more hours until we can hire someone else. Between homework, studying, and working, I don't have a lot of time to write. I am still working on it and the chapter should be out soon, it's just gonna be a little bit longer. Thank you guys for continuing to read. I'm still getting followers and favorites and it means a lot to me that people actually enjoy this story. I'm aiming for Friday this week to have the chapter up, but I can't make any promises, my schedule is crazy and all over the place but I will have down time throughout it, so again, thanks for reading, and sorry there isn't a new chapter up yet. Xx**


	6. Chapter 5

Elliot had kept to herself for the rest of the night, staying away from the other campers as they laughed around campfires. Bellamy didn't argue when she sent him away, giving her one last look over his shoulder before returning to the others. If she had been able to get her hands around a bottle of liquor, she sure would have had a better time staring up at the sky.

It was different. The sky. She could vaguely remember looking at it from the large window just outside Jasper's front door, earth staring back at her. It had always seemed so daunting. How big everything was outside the window. Especially for a little girl. From here, it all looked far away. Everything tiny and almost unreal. Whimsical and beautiful. Elliot could stare up at it all night if she was allowed to. Laying back, she never took her eyes away from the stars, tempting to count them as they shined above her. It was a dumb, childish thing to do, an impossible thing to do, but it kept her mind occupied and that's all she really needed. A breeze drifted over her, giving her goosebumps and she wrapped her arms around herself. She suddenly felt so small compared to what was up there. She wanted to be there. Not back on the Arc. She would die before she returned to the Arc, but in space. Drifting among the stars, peacefully dreaming and imagining. No fear, no worries, just her and the stars. As she continued to stare up at the night sky, she began to feel tired, eyelids growing heavy. She blinked slowly, fighting sleep that crept up on her. She was rubbing at her eyes when she saw it. Just the tail of something fly across the sky. Rolling onto her stomach, she searched for the object.

It was moving fast. A large ball of fire, hurdling towards earth in a speed that was so fast, it seemed to be moving in slow motion. Elliot pushed off the ground, circling around the dropship to keep the object in view. Others had noticed it as well, mocking her titled head and parted mouth.

"Bellamy! Get out here!" Octavia's voice made her look away and she rushed towards the younger girl's voice.

"It's from the Arc." She breathed, looking up once again.

Someone stepped up behind her, a chuckle escaping his lips, "They're coming for us. And now we can kick some grounder ass!"

A chorus of mesmerized cheers responded and Elliot swallowed. The sentence seemed almost daunting. _They're coming for us._ Beside her, Bellamy appeared. He was shirtless, his boots still unlaced and his pants undone. Elliot rolled her eyes as two girls followed behind him, wrapped in blankets. She wanted to tease him. Jab him in the elbow and call him an asshole, but the look on his face stopped her. He was watching the ship, like the others, but it wasn't excitement in his eyes. From what Elliot could see, it was fear.

Once the pod was out of view, things died down a bit. Bellamy got dressed and called a meeting with all his guys, and everyone else went on talking excitedly about finding the fallen object. Octavia and Elliot paced in front of what they had nicknamed Bellamy's "office tent", both just as eager as everyone else to go. After waiting patiently long enough, Octavia spun around and stepped into the tent, Elliot on her heels.

"We should get moving. Everyone's ready." Octavia blurted out. Even her speaking was rushed. But Elliot couldn't blame her. Her fingers drummed rapidly at the sides of her legs, waiting for Bellamy's okay to head out. She wasn't sure why she wanted to get to the podso bad. She had decided that the best explanation was everyone else's excitement.

"No one's going anywhere. Not while it's dark. It isn't safe," Bellamy shot his sister down quickly, arms crossed across his chest, "We'll head out at first light. Pass the word."

With a quick jut of their leader's head, the three boys huddled around that table stepped outside, following orders. Elliot and Octavia remained.

"Everyone for a hundred miles saw this thing come down," Octavia stopped her brother, making him look at her, "What if the grounders get to it first? Bell, we should go now."

Bellamy just shook his head, "I said we wait until sunrise."

Both girls stood in silence as he brushed past, leaving them. They glanced at each other. Octavia was clearly annoyed with her brother. The entire camp was willing to hike out into the dark to see what the Arc had sent down. Half those kids had been talking about seeing their parents and friends once again. Bellamy didn't even consider this. Elliot, on the other hand, figured there had to be something up. Though the way he was talking presented not even an ounce of care for the new arrival, the tension in his shoulders did. But he wasn't excited. He was scheming. And it wasn't anything good.

She left Octavia in the tent, heading around to start sharing the news with everyone else. No one seemed too upset about it, though the camp did quiet down a bit. She watched Clarke and Finn return, Clarke walking with purpose like she always did, with a smile growing on her lips. Then to her left, something caught her eye. At first, she thought it was someone sneaking into the camp but when she turned towards the figure, she saw it was Bellamy. She watched him sneak away from the rest, ducking through an unfinished portion of the fence, glancing back at the camp to make sure no one was following him.

Elliot scoffed, "You sneaky bastard." Whipping around and taking off in the direction she had last seen Octavia.

She found her talking to a couple other girls and didn't hesitate pulling her away from the conversation, "Your brother is leaving camp."

Octavia looked at her incredulously, "What?"

Elliot just nodded, "He's going after whatever is in the pod. And not with good intentions. Alright? So we're gonna follow him."

She didn't need to convince Octavia. Taking the lead, Elliot weaved through the people, keeping herself as inconspicuous as possible. They reached the small hole Bellamy had snuck off through, taking another look around. Clarke was marching towards his tent, still with purpose but this time pissed. _Wait until you find out he's gone._ Elliot mused to herself before ushering Octavia out.

They ran for a good five minutes, hoping they were going in the right direction. The rising sun gave them light but it was in no way helpful in guiding them towards Bellamy. With how much time there had been between him leaving and them leaving, he could already be at the pod by now. Elliot thought about giving up. They could take one wrong turn and get lost and that was the last thing they needed to do. She slowed her pace, Octavia doing the same.

"He's probably already there." She grumbled, searching the trees for any sign of the older Blake. Octavia was doing the same beside her.

"There he is," She gasped, racing ahead of Elliot, "Bellamy!"

Her voice stopped her brother and the look of annoyance was clearly evident from where the two girls were. "Go back to camp. It isn't safe." He spoke sternly and stressed. But neither of the girls listened. Frankly, neither of them cared.

Octavia stepped up to her brother, shaking her head, "You lied to everyone. You lied to me. You just want whatever's in that pod."

Bellamy shoved at his sister irritated, "Just go home!"

Knowing her place, Elliot kept out of the two siblings' fight, staying close enough to defend Octavia but far enough away so that she wasn't intruding. So far, she wasn't even sure if Bellamy was fully aware she was there.

Octavia seemed unfazed by the shove, stepping even closer to him and gritting her teeth, "You always wanna play the big brother, huh? Well, guess what? The joke's on me. You're just a selfish dick."

"I did this for you, to protect you," Bellamy boomed back. Elliot rolled her eyes, _How many times are you gonna pull that card, Blake?_ "If the Arc finds out we're alive, they'll come down. And when they do, I'm dead."

"What did you do?" Elliot couldn't help but interjected then, coming to stand beside Octavia. Bellamy swallowed, glaring at her for a moment and pursed his lips.

Meekly, he blurted out, "I shot him. I shot Jaha."

That was the last thing either of them expected to be said. It was utter disbelief that washed over their faces, both of them completely stunned that he would even say something like that.

"I found out they were sending you to Earth. I couldn't let you go alone," Bellamy began to explain, "Someone came to me with a deal; do this, kill him. And they'd get me on the dropship. And I did it."

The girls still couldn't believe it. Neither wanted to. But Octavia's disbelief was filled with anger and Elliot's was filled with a million questions. Bellamy had shot Jaha, the Chancellor. There was no forgiveness for that. But he hadn't been alone. Someone had told him to kill him. Someone who had the ability to get Bellamy close enough to Jaha as well as on the ship. Someone who could be suffering the consequences on the Arc and they had no idea down here.

"You shot the Chancellor?" Octavia asked, trying to clarify what her big brother was communicating.

Bellamy shifted on his feet, he was antsy, dying to get to that pod, "He floated our mother. He locked you up. He deserved it."

Octavia's anger dwindled down into hurt. She cowered away from her brother, shaking her head, "I didn't ask you to do that."

Her brother nodded. If he had kept it from her for this long, and Elliot figured he probably didn't have any intention on telling her.

"You're right. I made my choice. This is on me. Whatever they sent down, I'll take care of it."

Again Octavia shook her head, still stepping away from the older two, "I didn't asked for any of this." And then she took off, running back the way they had come.

Elliot watched her for a second before turning to give Bellamy a pointed look. He just shook his head, jaw clenching and turned in the other direction. Staying for only a second, she took off after Octavia, already losing her in the trees.

* * *

She had been walking for a while. Octavia had gotten a pretty good lead on her and was nowhere to be seen. Annoyed that she had let the girl get away, Elliot quickened her place. _Who the hell told Bellamy to kill the Chancellor? Who, with the power to even get someone like Bellamy that close to Jaha, would want the man who gave them said power to die. It could be someone on the guard, but that wouldn't make much sense. Guards had an easy life. Lived almost as nicely as the council did._ Elliot stopped. _The council. Someone on the council could have had a vengeance on their Chancellor, shit, almost everyone did, but someone who dealt with him every day, someone who could be against the views and ideas that he had presented. Larkin had told her about the voting laws. Maybe somebody had gotten pissed that the vote wasn't in their favor and had just snapped on day. It would explain why they would use someone like Bellamy to do the job. It would be Bellamy's word against someone on the council's. He wouldn't be able to win._ Elliot blinked, her mind hurt from trying to piece together something that had nothing to do with her at all. But as pieces began falling into place, a lead weight dropped in her stomach. She needed to know who had told Bellamy to shot Jaha, though she figured she already knew the answer. Looking back in the direction, she hoped Octavia had run off in, she sighed. Then another thought popped into her head. _Radio. That jackass was going for a radio._ Silently apologizing to Octavia, Elliot took off in a dead run back towards where they had last seen Bellamy.

* * *

She hadn't been running long, cutting across a small ravine to save time, when she came colliding with someone's chest. She steadied herself, stumbling away from the figure. Blinking, she realized she had run into the one person she was looking for. He stared at her confused, hand absentmindedly rubbing the spot where her head had slammed into his chest.

"What did you do?" She panted, trying to sound angry but she was too tired. Too thirsty. The sudden spurt of energy had worn her out.

"What I needed to do." He replied vaguely. He pushed past her like he had done a million times before, but this time, she grabbed at his arm, tugging him back. More like tugging her forward, since he had a good hundred pounds on her, _the majority of it probably muscle_ , she thought and shook her head.

"No, not what you needed to do. What you wanted to do. What you _need_ to do, is not be an asshole. What you need to do, is think about everyone else. The people that look up to you, the people who follow you. Your sister, dammit! Whatever you just did probably killed us. Probably killed them as well. You might have the others wrapped around your finger, but that doesn't mean you get to decide if we live or die. You made a mistake. You have to deal with the consequences, but you don't get to drag all of us down with you. Those are people's family members up there. Friends. And you just ruined the chance of seeing them again."

Bellamy ripped his arm away from her, ready to retaliate when another voice interjected. Both looked to see Clarke storming up to them, her eyes locked on Bellamy. He groaned inwardly, turning and starting to walk away.

"Hey, Princess. You taking a walk in the woods?"

Clarke raced past Elliot, stopping him once again, "They're getting ready to kill three hundred people up there to save oxygen. And I can guarantee you, it won't be council members. It'll be working people. Your people."

Elliot hurried forward, pulling Clarke away from Bellamy, "How do you know that?"

She didn't get an answer before Finn came hurrying from another direction, shoving Bellamy back hard, "Bellamy. Where's the radio?"

Bellamy bounced back quickly, shoving Finn, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Bellamy Blake?" This voice was completely new. Elliot glanced over Clarke's shoulder to see the petite brunette standing just a few feet away. Her head was bleeding, or had been bleeding and she was wearing Finn's jacket. She smirked at Blake, tilting her head slightly to the side, "They're looking everywhere for you."

 _Here we go._

"Looking for him why?" Clarke questioned, glancing between the boy beside her and whoever the girl was.

The girl smirked, almost proud to be getting Bellamy into even more trouble, "He shot Chancellor Jaha."

Clarke whirled around on Bellamy. This was all turning into one big shit show and Elliot kicked herself for coming along. If she had just stayed at camp, she wouldn't be having to deal with the conversation for a third time in the last hour. She tried blocking Finn and Clarke out, both of them scolding Bellamy like parents. Bellamy took it with annoyance, before walking off again. This time it as the girl that called after him, stepping in his way.

"Where's my radio?"

She continued to pester him until he stopped. He said something to her, voice too low for the other three to hear, but by his body language it was threatening. The girl gave him a smirk, retaliating and Bellamy suddenly grabbed at her. He spun them around, slamming her back into a tree. His hand held tightly around her neck as the others raced forward.

"Stop it." Clarke ordered. It seemed ineffective, Bellamy's grip never loosening from around her neck but then he dropped her, storming away once again.

"Jaha deserved to die. You all know that." He called over his shoulder.

In a way, Elliot was finding herself agreeing with him. Jaha did deserve to die, but _they_ didn't. Nor did the people on the Arc. She understood where Bellamy was coming from, what he was thinking, but he had gone about it the wrong way. He hadn't thought about what he was doing.

"Yeah, he's not my favorite person, either," The girl swallowed, rubbing at her throat, "But he isn't dead."

"What?" Bellamy's voice was dry, small. All signs of their tough leader vanished for a millisecond, replaced by a gut wrenching fear.

The girl just smirked, happy she had been able to whittle him down, "You're a lousy shot."

Elliot hurried over to him, stepping between him and the girl, so that his attention fell on her, "You see what this means? You're not a murderer. You always did what you had to do to protect your sister, right? That's who you are. You can do it again, by protecting three hundred of your people," She stepped closer, making her tone and expression more sincere, "Where is the radio?"

Bellamy just shook his head, "It's too late."

"Bellamy," She was begging now, hoping it would work, "I know you're not a bad guy. I've seen the way you treat people at camp. How you treated Charlotte. Your sister. Me," She felt awkward listing herself and regretted it, but now wasn't the time to worry about it, "You did what you could for your family right? So that you can be together. Let the rest of them have that chance. Where is the radio, Bellamy?"

He swallowed, looking away from her, "They'll kill me."

"Then give them a reason not to." Bellamy wore the same expression she had when Clarke had spoken the same words to her only a few weeks ago. It felt inspiring to say it, like she was really convincing him to have faith in himself. But it felt unreal at the same time, like it was just words that rolled off her tongue. She wanted to believe he would be okay. She wanted to believe that she would be okay. But things were different here and there was no telling what they would do when they came down. _If_ they came down.

* * *

Finn and Elliot were sent back to camp to get others and met with Clarke, Bellamy and the new girl, Raven at the river. Instructions were pretty simple, scan the water for the radio, let Raven know immediately.

Elliot scanned downstream, enjoying the cool water seeping in through her boots and cooling her entire body. Raven was standing on the river bank, directing people. Her head injury had kept her from doing a lot of the work, per Clarke's orders, but she didn't seem to upset about being the head of operations. Behind her, Bellamy crouched in the grass. He hadn't spoken since they got to the river, which wasn't a surprise to anyone. Clarke and Finn were only a few feet behind her to the right, neither finding anything. As of now, no one had come up with anything at all. There weren't even fish swimming around.

From behind them, some kid shouted out that he had finally found something. Lifting the hunk of metal over his head, relief washed over the rest of them. Raven hurried out to him, taking the radio from him and trudged back up on to the bank. The others followed behind, anxious to hear what she had to say.

"Can you fix it?" Clarke blurted out. She was standing just behind Raven, peering over her shoulder at the soaked machine.

Raven turned to her, stepping away a bit and shrugged, "Maybe. But it'll take half a day to dry out the components to see what's broken." A groan rippled through the group. All the trouble of finding the damn thing and now it might not ever work.

"Like I said, it's too late." Bellamy spoke off to the side, arms crossed.

Clarke rushed at him, jamming a finger into his chest, "Three hundred people are gonna die today because of you."

The words were harsh. Even if what Bellamy did was selfish and stupid, it still wasn't fair to put the blame solely on him. If anything, the blame was on all of them. No one had to listen to Bellamy and take off their wristbands. If enough people had rebelled, Bellamy's orders would have been overlooked and the Arc would have to kill anyone. Elliot felt sorry for the guy, though she understood Clarke's anger. Bellamy's actions were dumb. And people were paying with their lives.

"You asked me to help. I helped." He jutted back.

Elliot stepped between them, stopping Clarke from responding. Fighting and degrading one another wasn't going to save anyone. Nor was it going to fix anything else. It could be saved for another time and place.

"Hold up," Thankfully, Raven began speaking, the gears in her head turning, "We don't have to talk to the Arc. We just have to let them know we're down here, right?"

"Yeah, but how do we do that with no radio?" Finn's question was answered with a smirk and Raven began instructing people. Clarke sent Bellamy, Elliot and a couple others back to camp to get things ready there, while the rest headed back to the pod.

Clarke pulled Elliot to the side as they began going their separate ways, "You're in charge of making sure things go as planned, alright? Tell Monty to use the batteries from the dropship and that we are making flares. He'll understand what he needs to do." Elliot nodded in understanding.

"And watch your boyfriend." Raven interjected, raising an eyebrow at her.

Elliot shook her head, momentarily confused about what she was talking about. Eyes widening briefly, she shook her head even more vigorously, "Bellamy's definitely not my boyfriend."

Raven's eyes shifted towards Clarke for a moment then back to Elliot. She gave a nonchalant shrug, "Could have fooled me," and walked away.

Elliot turned to Clarke with a pleading look, but Clarke just brushed her off. "Go, we don't have a lot of time."

Watching her friend hurry after the rest of the group, Elliot groaned. What even gave Raven the idea her and Bellamy were dating? Did she really think Elliot would date an asshole like him?

"You comin', Half Pint?" _Speak of the devil._ Pushing Raven's comment to the back of her mind, she glared at Bellamy

"Don't call me that."

* * *

They lagged behind the rest of them, neither talking to one another. There wasn't much to say. Both knowing that the conversation would just end up in an argument. Elliot felt sorry for Bellamy. Not because he was being blamed for all of this, but because he felt like he had to what he did. He had done this because he thought it would help protect his sister. He wasn't being selfish if you actually broke it down and thought about it. Keeping himself alive was keeping his sister alive. He killed someone for her. In an odd sense, she was annoyed that Octavia wasn't more thankful for her brother caring about her so much. Bellamy wasn't thinking about himself, he was thinking about her.

"Who told you to do it?" She blurted out. The question had been on the tip of her tongue since he told them he'd shot the Chancellor. She wanted to know. Needed to know. She needed validation.

He looked at her, surprised she would even ask and looked away, "Why would I tell you?"

"Because Larkin means just as much to me as Octavia does to you. So if he told you to shoot the Chancellor, then I need to know."

Again he looked at her, this time a hint of sympathy hide behind his hard eyes. He shook his head, "Ellio-"

"Please, Bellamy," She stopped him, hand wrapped tightly around his wrist, "I need to know. What if they found out? And now he's going to die. What if he's already dead? Bellamy, I need to know why he made you shoot Jaha. Please," She swallowed, "Tell me."

"He just told me to do it. Said if I did, he could get me on the ship. There wasn't much else, alright?"

It wasn't alright. He wasn't telling her everything. But it wasn't the time to push, so instead she let him go, storming away from him. The fear that Larkin could be floated, or already had been sat heavy in her mind. Maybe he was even one of the three hundred going to die that day. This thought pushed her into overdrive. Passing instructions on to the other campers as soon as they were back, she helped anyway she possibly could until there was nothing else left to do but wait for Clarke's group to return.

* * *

It was almost dark when the other group returned, lunging equipment in all of their arms. Raven went to work immediately, constructing one flare and others who had been watching began making the others. By the time the sun had disappeared and you couldn't see through the trees surrounding the camp, they had four large flares made. Setting them into the braces, the entire camp crowded around.

Clarke and Elliot stood beside one another, both anxiously staring into the sky. Far above them the Arc could be seen. It looked so small. Barely even visible. It was hard to believe that there were actual people living up there. It was even harder to believe that she had been up there. Life on the Arc seemed like a distant memory now. Almost a dream. She couldn't even remember what her room looked like. It was easy to visualize the cell she had spent the last three years of her life in. But that was only because there wasn't much to the room. Just for gray walls and a hard bed. It was strange to be on the outside looking in. Or rather, below looking up. She liked it better down here. Down here she was free. Down here she felt better, healthier, happier. Regardless of how rough the last few weeks had been, she was alive. She wouldn't have been if she was up there. Clarke grabbed at her arm as the flares were set off, watching them take off into the sky, growing smaller as they went higher. They looked at one another, hopeful smiles on their faces. Another person came up beside Elliot and she turned to see Bellamy staring up at the sky above.

"You think they can see 'em from up there?" He asked.

Elliot looked back at the sky. The flares were just bright lights now, continuing to grow smaller.

"I don't know," She replied, "I hope so."

"Can you wish on this kind of shooting star?" Clarke asked and the other two turned to look at her. The question seemed random and out of place, but something behind Clarke's eyes told Elliot that she really meant it.

"Forget it." The blonde brushed them off, turning her attention back to the flares.

Elliot and Bellamy looked at each other, seeing if the other knew what their Princess was talking about.

"I don't even know what to wish for," Bellamy replied solemnly, "What about you?"

Elliot blinked, already knowing her wish. She reached up, placing her hand over Clarke's still wrapped around her arm and sighed. _Please, be alive._

* * *

 **So it's a day late and I don't know how much I like it. It's also shorter than the others and I hate that. Hopefully next chapter will be better. Thank you to everyone who as favorited and followed, I'm glad so many people like it, hopefully you still do. As always, feedback is greatly appreciated!**

 **Also~ How did you guys like the first two episodes of season 3?**


	7. Chapter 6

Excitement over the missiles died down pretty quickly, campers necks growing tired from staring up into the night sky. None of them really knew what they should expect either. It could be a while before they got a response from the Arc, if they got anything. Their best bet was just to wait it out. So slowly, the crowd dispersed, finding other things to busy themselves with. Elliot was still lost in the stars when a thought hit her. Turning to look at the teens talking around her, she searched for a familiar brown haired girl. In her eagerness to get communication to the Arc, she had completely forgotten about Octavia. And now, she didn't see the girl anywhere. Breaking away from the group, she started searching through the crowd. She avoided Bellamy as much as possible, keeping distance between her and Octavia's older brother.

It wasn't until later, when her hope was dwindling and her heart was pounding that he pulled her aside, hand wrapped tightly around her forearm.

"Have you seen Octavia?"

Elliot swallowed. She knew lying to him wasn't going to get her anyway but she couldn't find the words to tell him that his sister was missing. Instead, she just shook her head, taking another glance around the camp. Most of the others had gone to their tents to sleep, only a few stragglers sat around a dying fire, talking quietly.

She expected the older brother to be furious with her. She expected him to blame her, but instead he let her go, his hard look changing to panic. He mimicked her early action and looked around the camp, half expecting to see his little sister, like he had just overlooked her or something. Elliot felt bad, shoulders slumping.

"I'll help you look," She assured him, "You check the tents and I'll check the fence. Maybe she's on lookout or watching for a sign from the Arc." She didn't even believe herself, but it seemed to tide Bellamy over some. He gave her a thankful nod and stepped away.

She look in a deep breath, looking at him as he walked away. She knew Octavia wasn't in the camp. Octavia was out there, somewhere. Alone, maybe even injured. Steeling herself, Elliot grabbed a flashlight and a makeshift machete from the weapons table. Slipping into the darkness beside the drop ship, she snuck out the fence and into the woods.

When Bellamy reached Clarke's tent minutes later, his panic had risen substantially. Clarke offered her help, saying she wasn't doing it for him but for Octavia. But another sweep over the camp came up not only without Octavia but now without Elliot.

"She knew she wasn't in camp." Bellamy growled, angry that Elliot had lied to him.

"We can't jump to any conclusions," Clarke tried to reason with him, knowing if he was getting angry it wasn't going to help anything, "She probably just assumed Octavia had run off. It wouldn't be that surprising."

"Yeah, or a Grounder got her." The comment was made by a tall brunette girl, Roma, rolling her eyes and glancing to the two girls beside her. Clarke squinted at her, trying to figure out if she knew or cared about the girl. Finding she didn't, she brushed the comment away.

Bellamy had called for a search party, handing out weapons to anyone able and willing. Even Jasper stepped up. Seeing this, Clarke pulled him to the side.

"You don't have to do this. You haven't left camp since we brought you back."

Jasper shifted anxiously on his feet, "Did Elliot really leave camp alone?"

The blonde nodded, momentarily forgetting about Elliot's disappearance as well. And Jasper straightened his back.

"Clarke, I have to do this."

Clarke watched him grab a weapon, hands shaking as he prepared himself to leave the comfort and safety of camp. Then she was thinking about Elliot. Why had she taken off like that? Lied to Bellamy and snuck out without telling anyone where she was going. Another thought popped in her head, and she hurried towards where Bellamy and Finn stood.

"We need to find Elliot first." She ordered, causing the older Blake to look at her incredulously.

Before he could respond, she continued, "Elliot had to have left with some kind of plan. She probably knows where Octavia is, or where Octavia was last. We find her, she can help us get to Octavia."

The boys looked at one another. Bellamy seemed hesitate about the idea, angry that the focus of the mission wasn't fully on his little sister at the moment, but Finn liked the idea.

"It could save us time as well. Elliot can lead us to the last place she saw Octavia and I can follow the trail from there."

Still hesitate, Bellamy nodded. He called the group back together, telling them the change of plans and they headed out into the darkness.

* * *

Elliot kept her flashlight off as she jogged through the woods. The moon was providing just enough light that her eyes could make out objects. The flashlight would only draw attention to anything out and around her. Keeping her weapon held firmly in her hand, she moved forward, retracing her and Octavia's steps from earlier. She found the spot where they had confronted Bellamy and spun around. Everything looked different in the dark now. Gritting her teeth, she took off parallel to the direction she had come from.

In a matter of minutes, she reached a standstill. This was the place she had lost Octavia in. She could vaguely remember the direction she saw the brunette hair disappear, but other than that, she had nothing. She had no idea where Octavia could have gone.

"Dammit." She whimpered, eyes welling with angry tears. How could she let this happen? This wasn't supposed to be her fault. She should have just stayed with Octavia instead of running after Bellamy. It didn't help anything anyway. The radio was still broken and the people on the Arc were still going to die. Wiping at her nose with the sleeve of her shirt, she tried to focus once again on where the younger girl could have gone.

Above her, something caught her eye. Through the tree tops, she could see, what looked like meteors falling from the sky. And a lot of them. But they were clustered close together, each burning with the same intensity and blue-ish hue. And they were coming from the Arc. They had been too late. The three hundred people had been killed. But she didn't have time to mourn or worry. Behind her, she could just make out the tone of voices. There were at least three that she could make out. She looked around for any kind of hiding place and quickly disappeared into the brush beside her. She hoped that whoever was following her, would pass without any idea she was there, and she lowered herself even further to the cold ground.

"I've got nothing anymore. Tracks stop here."

Elliot stood up immediately, relief in her expression, "Finn?"

She was surprised by how many people were standing there, whipping around at the sound of her voice. Finn and Bellamy stood at the front of the group, holding large torches.

"Where's Octavia?" The latter stepped towards her. His tone and mannerisms caused her to back up some. She'd seen him angry before, but now that it was directed at her, it seemed terrifying. Finn stepped between them, reassuring her to step out of the bushes. She was met by Jasper, who stood beside her for a sense of support as she replied to Bellamy.

"I- I don't know. This was the last place I saw her. I thought if I could get here, I could figure out where she went. Bellamy, I'm so sorry. I never should have left her," She was looking around her, hoping something would spark a memory or suddenly she would just know which way the younger Blake sibling had ran off in, "This is my fault. If I had been able to keep up with her this wouldn't be happening."

Jasper grabbed her shoulder, "Ellie, you need to calm down, alright? We'll find her. Which way did she go?"

Elliot shook her head, "I don't know."

"Ellie, come on. I need you to think. Which way did Octavia go?"

Elliot stepped away from him, looking back at the area ahead of them. If it was daylight, it would be so much better. No the moon was casting frightening shadows on the ground around them, stretching trees to twice their length.

"Left," She finally whispered, looking back at him, "But I could be wrong. I don't know where she went."

Finn stepped in this time, giving her a kind smile, "I can figure it out."

He waved the group forward, and they all picked up into a light jog, following Finn as he weaved through the woods. She picked up into a jog beside Jasper, keeping her mouth shut. She didn't need to know why he was out here looking for Octavia. She was just glad he was. Instead, she looked around for Clarke. It was strange that the girl who made sure they could all live, wasn't leading the pack.

"Where's Clarke?" She asked, trying to calm her nerves and keep herself from thinking about Octavia.

"With Raven. She was taking her somewhere to find something." Jasper replied. It wasn't much help but it gave some explanation to their leader's absence. The answer would have to do, because seconds later, Mbege shouted out that he had found something.

The group veered off to the right, stumble through thick brush before coming up on a steep hill. Elliot stopped just beside Bellamy, peering down at whatever Mbege's flashlight had landed on.

"You think that's Octavia's?" She asked, tearing her eyes away from the fabric tangled in a skeletal looking bush and looking at him.

"Rope." He shouted out. The ordered wasn't directed towards her but was a response all the same. Stepping out of the way, so Bellamy could loop the rope around a tree trunk, she looked back at the brush below.

Finn stepped around her, skeptical about the idea, "What are you doing?"

Bellamy paused only briefly, "We need the rope to get back up," He glanced at Elliot, "Flashlight."

She handed it over to him and watched with the others as he quickly descended down the hill. Moments later, he stood up, verifying that the belt was in fact Octavia's. Elliot didn't waste time, following him down with Jasper and Finn right behind her. They landed one by one of the soft, muddy ground, coming to crouch around Bellamy.

"Someone else was here." He informed, pointing towards a trail of large foot prints.

Finn stared at them for a moment, glancing back at the other footprints made by whoever had been standing earlier just beside where they all crouched now, "The prints are deeper going that way. He was carrying her."

"They took her, she's alive," Jasper responded, "Like when they took me."

The others looked between one another. That wasn't good news. Jasper had almost died. Most of the camp had completely lost faith in the kid surviving. If the same thing happened to Octavia, Elliot wouldn't be able to live with herself. And she knew Bellamy would be able to either. Before any of the others moved, she was up and walking, following the tracks as best she could in the dark. Now she didn't care if they were following her or not, she had a lead and she was going to find Octavia.

* * *

The others did follow her, not to her surprise, and Finn took up guiding again. This trail was a lot denser. Most of them were having to cut at thick underbrush and vines, tripping up on roots growing out of the ground and sinking into mud. But Finn seemed to be locked on to whoever had Octavia and it was worth it.

Elliot almost collided into Jasper's back when he stopped suddenly. She scooted around him, already grumbling at him when her eyes caught what had stopped them. Just a few feet ahead, tied in the trees, where about twenty decaying skeletons.

"I don't speak Grounder, but I'm pretty sure this means keep out." Finn's words were joking but his tone was serious. They were standing on a boundary. And there was no telling what would happen once they crossed it. If they crossed it.

Behind them, teens were beginning to grow weary. A few even started to turn back. Elliot couldn't blame them. She would be right there with them, ready to make the long trek back to camp if it had been anyone but Octavia in there, and if she was hurt, they needed to keep going.

"Go back if you want," Bellamy cut their complaining short, "My sister, my responsibility." The last part was barely audible, like he was talking to himself more than the rest of the group. Resting a hand on the weapon at his side, he ventured into the new territory. Elliot didn't hesitate to follow him. Behind her, she could hear the shuffling of feet and was almost relieved to see Jasper and Finn coming up behind. And not long after, Mbege, Monroe, and a couple others followed as well. At least they had some kind of fighting chance.

* * *

There was a still silence resting over the trees and it seemed like this portion of the forest was darker. Elliot was convinced her mind was playing tricks on her, making her see and hear things that weren't there. _You're just scared. Get over it._ She repeated this to herself multiple times through the trek until Finn stopped them, turning around with a defeated look on his face.

"I've got nothing. We lost the trail."

The statement didn't sit well with Bellamy and he urged the other teen to continue looking. Finn threw up his hands, turning around to gesture towards the trees with emphasis.

"Wandering around aimlessly isn't the way to find your sister. We should backtrack."

Bellamy shook his head, "I'm not going back."

"We don't have time to backtrack," Elliot mumbled, eyes still scanning the tree line, she was positive she had seen something this time, "We need to keep going."

Before Finn could argue with her, a girl named Roma spoke up from the back.

"Where's John?"

The others looked around, searching for the eighth member of their group, finding him nowhere. Elliot and Jasper looked at one another and she could see the sweat begin to bead on his forehead, his chest rising and falling more rapidly.

"Spread out," Bellamy ordered, "He couldn't have gotten that far."

Elliot took a step forward, reaching for her weapon in case of an attack. She stumbled backwards, tripping over her own feet as something came falling from the trees, landing just inches from where she stood. She continued tripping over herself when she realized it was Mbege's lifeless body. She lost her balance, finally, landing hard on her bottom with a jolt. But her eyes stayed glued to the dead kid that had fallen from the trees.

"They use the trees." Finn breathed, stating the obvious.

Elliot groaned as the pain from her fall traveled up her spine and down her legs. She had definitely bruised something. Grunting, she pushed herself forward on to her knees and began to push herself up. A hand grabbed her arm, hoisting her up the rest of the way. She turned to thank Bellamy for helping her, but found he wasn't even looking at her now.

"There." He breathed, and she positioned herself to look at whatever had him mesmerized. Her blood ran cold when she saw the large figure standing in the trees just yards from them.

"Right there." She didn't have to look to know what Jasper meant.

Diggs, who was standing with his back to them, announced the arrival of another one standing the same distance away but to their right now.

Elliot's body became tense. She shifted her glance from the Grounder in front of her to Bellamy and then to Finn.

"Run." She hissed under her breath. In unison, the group took off, staying as close to one another as they could.

It was hard running as fast as you could, dodging vines and fallen tree trunks. The pain in Elliot's back had lessened though the constant motion keep it at a dull throb. She allowed herself to fall to the back, excusing it as making sure Jasper kept with the group. He was still on the mend from his own injury and running wasn't helping the kid that had been speared in the chest.

Bellamy led the group, constantly urging them to continue running. But each time they made any progress, another one would appear in front and lead them off. Elliot was almost rejoiceful when Jasper stumbled to a stop. She did the same, using a tree to lean against.

"I can't run for much longer." Jasper rasped. His breathing was heavy and ragged.

The others stopped, all except Diggs, who pushed his way through everyone, "I'm not stopping for him," and continued running.

"I'm sick of running anyway." Bellamy breathed, drawing his weapon. He turned as if, he was going to go back, but Finn stepped in his way.

"Hey, what are you going?"

"They know where she is." Bellamy explained.

"Diggs, where are you?" Roma called out into the quiet woods, getting no response from the other teen. Elliot watched as her paced quickened and hurried around Jasper.

A second later, Diggs called back to her and Roma took off. Elliot, knowing that it had to be some kind of trap, followed behind her.

"Roma! Elliot!" Finn was following behind, maybe the rest of them even if Bellamy hadn't decided to run off in the other direction, towards the fight.

* * *

Elliot kept up with Roma as best she could, surprised at how fast the girl could still go even though they had been running for a while now. They stopped abruptly in a small clearing. Both staring wide eyed at Diggs. The Grounders had rigged some kind of contraption, a booby trap. It had swung out from wherever it had been hidden and impaled him through the chest. Blood dripped from his mouth and nose and he stared back at them with glossy eyes. Roma screamed, taking off again, but Elliot stayed put. She couldn't take her eyes away from his face.

 _She could see him lying there. The now only vague depiction of her home on the arc, forming around them. She stared down at him, unwavering. The lifeless stare of her father's brown eyes, looking up at her –no, past her, a glossy, almost teary eyed sheen to them, like when you find herself stuck staring at something for too long and your eyes become dry and tears start welling up. The blood that run from his mouth, down his cheek and had begun to pool by his ear. He was dead. He had been dead the moment he hit the ground. But she knew he had suffered. Felt the blade that stabbed through his skin and sunk deep into his body. She knew he had felt death coming. But he didn't look like it now. His eyes didn't show that he had been stabbed. His facial expression didn't show that he was in pain or that he was dead. He just looked distant. Distracted. Unamused._

 _"Elliot!"_

 _Larkin's voice came in distant, but she continued to stare at her father._

 _"Elliot!"_

 _This time the voice was off, the tone had changed and the urgency was different. It wasn't panicked like she had remembered. It was concerned. Worried._

"Elliot!" She blinked, and there was Bellamy, staring into her eyes with confusion and what she wanted to believe was worry.

He had reached out and grabbed her arm, as if he was trying to hold her steady. And she blinked, reality falling back into place around her. She suddenly became aware again of what was happening and shook away the mental picture still stuck in the back of her mind.

"You good?" He asked, keeping his voice low.

She just nodded, stepping away from him. She kept herself from looking at Diggs anymore and focused on the Grounders around them. Or lack of Grounders for that matter.

"Where'd they go?" Finn asked, coming up beside her.

She shook her head, narrowing her eyes like it would help her see any clearer or further into the trees. A scream rippled back at them and they all took a collective step towards one another.

"After Roma." Bellamy answered and they were running again.

Elliot knew they shouldn't run towards the sound of Roma. It was a trap. Something wasn't right about the way she was screaming. It wasn't for help. It wasn't even directed at them. It was out of fear. Terror. She was being hunt and she knew it.

They came up on Roma after a while. She was still ahead of them, leaning against a tree. The others seemed relieved to see the girl was still on her feet, but Elliot knew better. She didn't stop with the others, continuing to the tree Roma was pressed against. She knew the girl was dead before she reached her, but she had to see. Just to verify that it was true. That they had lost Roma. When she reached the girl, she was met with the same lifeless glazed look. Bellamy pushed past her, breaking her stare and she was able to turn away, distract herself with something else.

"They're playing us." Finn breathed beside her.

She backed away from Roma and Bellamy, stepping around the tree so the girl was completely out of view.

"They can kill us whenever they want." Finn continued. They were all looking around, weapons out, guards up. They were a long way from home and they didn't stand a chance against the Grounders.

Elliot nearly jumped out of her skin when Jasper began screaming out, taunting their attackers. She leaped towards him fighting to get a hand over his mouth but he was taller and stronger, keeping her hands away. Bellamy and Finn came charging at him as well, but he continued to shout.

"They're coming!" Monroe shouted out and the other three whipped around.

Sure enough the Grounders were coming at them again, this time running. They braced themselves to put up some kind of fight, knowing they were all going to die when a horn sounded. The Grounders stopped immediately, looking between one another. Then, by the grace of God, they turned and ran off away from the four.

"They're leaving." Bellamy breathed in confusion.

"That horn," Jasper pointed out, "What does it mean?"

Finn was the one to answer, exchanging a panicked look with Bellamy and Elliot, "Acid fog."

But something was different. Off. The sound was echoy, hollow. The first time, and Elliot could remember almost distinctly, it had been loud and almost thick. She remembered feeling it ring in her ears.

"We have to run." Monroe stated, but if it was the fog, they wouldn't have time. It wouldn't make any difference. They would either die right where they stood or a few feet away.

"There's no time." Finn dug through his backpack, pulling out a large parachute. He didn't need to tell everyone to hurry under it, laying as flat to the ground as they could.

"Tuck it under your feet. It'll blow up underneath and smoke us out," Elliot instructed, "Bellamy, Jasper, tuck the sides under you."

They did as she said, laying side by side anxiously as wind whipped over their heads.

"How long are we supposed to wait?"

The last time they had dealt with fog, Jasper had been dying. Or they thought he was. He hadn't experienced the burning sensation in his lungs and eyes, or on his skin. He didn't have to witness Atom's death and the agonizingly amount of time they had sit, hidden from the yellow fog before it cleared and they could return home.

"Will this even work?" Monroe and Elliot looked at one another. It was a risky idea hiding under a shear piece of fabric but if the wind that was whipping around them was acid fog, it was doing a pretty good job.

"We'll find out." Finn replied almost morbidly and Elliot hoped he was answered Jasper's question and not Monroe's.

"No we won't," Bellamy shifted, pulling the parachute out from under him and lifting it over his head quicker than any of them could react to, "There is no fog."

The others scrambled out, happy to be back in the fresh, open air even though they were still in danger, it was better than being crammed together with thick, hot air.

"Maybe it was a false alarm."

Their relief was cut short when they caught sight of a Grounder running parallel to them. He was further away than they had been before.

"I think he's alone." Jasper pointed out, but still the others scanned around them.

He was right, as far as they could tell, he was the only Grounder around.

Monroe was the first to urge them to run again, but the others were intrigued by the man. He hadn't stopped moving, but hadn't looked at them either. If he was trying to sneak up on them, he was doing a terrible job at it.

"I don't think he sees us." Elliot whispered, stepping forward to get a closer look at him.

"He doesn't." Bellamy stepped beside her, "I'm going after him."

He started to take off, but Elliot was quick to stop him, grabbing his arms tightly and tugging him back, "And what? Kill him?" She gave him a pointed look, telling him with her expression that it was a dumb idea.

Bellamy turned to her, shaking his head, "No. Catch him. Make him tell me where Octavia is, then," He hinted a smirk, "Kill him."

He easily ripped his arm from her grasp, taking off once again. Elliot spun around to the others, eyes wide. Monroe simply gestured to Bellamy and the other girl rolled her eyes. Turning back around, she picked up into a jog and followed Bellamy. Monroe joined her, keeping their pace even as the other two boys hurried behind.

They finally caught up to Bellamy when he came to a stop. The mouth of a cave sat just a few feet from them, and he was almost too sure it was where the Grounder had gone. He looked at them, each of them giving him a small nod and one by one they stepped inside, immediately engulfed by a stale, cold darkness.

Elliot stayed behind Bellamy. Her eyes had only began adjusting to the darkness and she could make out his shoulders vaguely. It was the only comfort she had. As long as Bellamy's shoulders stayed in front of her, she wasn't alone. She could hear Finn breathing behind her and hoped the others were there as well, with their own help of guidance.

A faint light ahead gave them some hope and their pace quickened until the light grew and they found themselves in small room. On the floor was the Grounder they had followed. He was currently unconscious, breathing shallow. To his right was a small figure, huddled against the wall with their back to the group.

"Octavia?" Bellamy rasped out, his voice almost pleading.

The figure turned around, revealing that it was in fact Octavia and relief washed over all of them. She broke into tears at the sight of her brother, and he rushed forward, dropping to his knees to unchain her from the wall. As soon as her hands were free, she leapt into his arms, pressing herself as tightly to his body as she could. He held her tightly, whisper to her that she was okay. When they pulled away, Elliot ducked around him, getting her own good look at Octavia. The younger girl seemed elated to see her, wrapping her arms around her neck. Elliot hugged her back, thankful she was alive and for the most part okay. Bellamy watched their reunion, happy to see that someone was just as worried about his little sister as he was.

 _The place he had called home seemed less like a home and more like a prison as time wore on. His life had flipped drastically after Octavia's arrest. He was left alone, little sister locked away, and mother floated. He had lost his job, his family. He was alone and it was his fault._

 _There was a knock at the door, and he was tempted to ignore it. But his feet felt otherwise and before he really knew it, he was opening the door. It was an understatement to say he was confused as to why Larkin Hobbs, one of the council members, standing on the other side._

 _"Cadet Blake." He spoke with prestige and class, like a councilman would, hands folded behind his back._

 _"It's Janitor Blake now." Bellamy replied dryly._

 _"My apologies." Larkin rolled his shoulders, like he was nervous about something. Bellamy noticed he was bouncing on his toes now, eyes shifting._

 _"May I?" The councilman gesture inside and Bellamy stepped to the right, allowing him entrance._

 _"You've got some nerve coming here after decided to kill my mother." He grumbled. He was tense._

 _"For the record, I voted against it."_

 _Bellamy's body loosened and he really looked at Larkin. He was nervous, pacing back and forth in front of Bellamy, hands wringing together behind his back._

 _"Why are you here?"_

 _"Shumway told me you were hell of a guardsman, Bellamy. He praised you."_

 _Bellamy scoffed, "I can distinctly remember him telling me I wasn't a guardsman the night he arrested my sister."_

 _Larkin stopped, looking at him now, "Then you should remember that you said you'd do anything for your sister. I hope that is still true."_

 _Bellamy stepped forward, the mention of his sister raised the hair on the back of his neck, "Is she okay?"_

 _Larkin swallowed, the nervousness returning, "What I'm about to tell you is classified," He paused, as if debating if what he was about to say was really the best idea, "Chancellor Jaha has approved a missions to Earth. He's sending the juvenile prisoners to the ground. One hundred of them; your sister included."_

 _"N-no you can't. It's not safe. You have to stop them." Bellamy urged. Octavia was being sent to Earth. The planet soaked in radiation. For what reason? To die? Where they going to kill them?_

 _The councilman seemed just as concerned about the idea, "I wish I could. What I can do is get you a seat on that drop ship," He glanced at Bellamy, nodding at the perplexed look in his eyes, "You're right, it's doubtful those kids will survive. But if you're there, at least Octavia won't be alone."_

 _Bellamy clenched his jaw. There was nothing here for him. At least, he would be with Octavia one last time._

 _"What do I have to do?"_

 _Larkin hesitated again, "Kill the Chancellor."_

 _"The Chancellor?" Bellamy half thought it was a joke. There was no way he could get that close to the Chancellor._

 _"That's not all," Larkin continued, "My god-daughter, she turns eighteen today. They have decided to float her. I can get you close enough to the Chancellor if you can get her on the drop ship with you."_

 _The idea was insane. Larkin was asking more than enough of Bellamy who had no idea if he would be able to pull this off or not. Seeing the doubt in his face, Larkin hurriedly explained the plan._

 _"If words travels fast enough that Jaha has been shot, security will be scarce. We can get to Elliot before anyone else and get you both on the ship. You'll be with your sister again and Elliot has a chance to live."_

 _"So you believe we can survive down there?" Bellamy questioned, eyeing the councilman._

 _Larkin nodded, "I do, Bellamy. Please. Ship launches in 20 minutes. If you're gonna do this, we have to leave. Right now."_

"How did you find me?" Octavia had pulled away from Elliot to hug Jasper.

Jasper jutted his head in the direction of the unconscious Grounder, "Followed him."

Octavia's attitude seemed to change and she returned to her brother, tugging at him, "We should go now, before he wakes up."

But Bellamy had other plans. Stepping away from his sister, he moved towards the Grounder, "He's not gonna wake up." He pulled a small knife from his pocket, readying himself to kill the unconscious man, but Octavia fought him.

"He didn't hurt me. Let's just go." She struggled against her brother. Elliot watched as Bellamy let the girl shove him back. He could have easily moved her to the side, finished what he started to do and be done with it. Instead, he waited until she had let him go before stepping forward again.

"They started this," he argued, "Finn, move."

But Finn was preoccupied. He lifted something up to eye level, examining it in the dim light, "Foghorn."

Then in a flash of limbs, the Grounder sat up, stabbing a blade into Finn's chest. Elliot reacted immediately, jumping at the Grounder. She was able to dodge his swinging arm but not quick enough to miss the swift kick that sent her back into the cave wall. Her head slammed hard against the rock surface, vision blurring in and out for a moment before fading to black.

She woke up with a jolt, only unconscious for a moment. Jasper was leaning over her, pulling her up onto her feet.

"Finn." She groaned, voice sounded more meek and strained than she had meant for it to be.

"Bellamy has him. Can you walk?"

She nodded, letting Jasper wrap an arm around her waist. She looped her arm around his neck, pain pounding at the back of her head. Octavia came up on her left, attempting to help her, but Elliot had seen the limp in her own walk and pushed her off.

"Monroe," She grumbled out, "Help Octavia."

She looked back at Bellamy, watching him lift Finn off the ground. His shirt was soaked in blood, the knife still protruding from his chest.

"We'll lead." She spoke, urging Jasper to start moving.

* * *

She was able to gain stability after a while, keeping up with Jasper as they hurried ahead of the others. Things around her were foggy and it seemed too bright outside even with the cloud cover but she kept going, pushing herself. She followed Jasper, pace slowly as the familiar wall of camp appeared, letting him race ahead. He turned to see if she was with him, stopping and hurrying back to her.

"I'm fine, Jasper." She breathed, blinking slowly. Jasper just pursed his lips, grabbing a hold of her once again. He kept his pace reasonable, the others now right behind them as he led her in the gate.

"Clarke! Where's Clarke!"

Clarke came running through the crowd, worry on her face, "I'm here. What's up?"

Her immediately worry fell on Elliot but the brunette shook her head, "Finn."

As if on cue, Bellamy appeared with Finn draped in his arms. His skin had paled and he was sweating. He didn't look good at all.

Raven appeared behind Clarke, horror on her face at the sight of Finn. Elliot stayed closed to Clarke, watching her examine over the injured boy before breathing out a hopeful statement.

"He's alive."

"Bellamy wouldn't let me take the knife out." Jasper replied, still holding on to Elliot. She could feel her legs giving out on her, and felt bad that she was relying on Jasper to keep her up, but he didn't see fazed.

Clarke shook her head, "No, that was a good call," She waved over a couple other boys, who took Finn from Bellamy, "Get him in the dropship now."

They carried him as quickly and gently as they could, careful not to disturb the wound. Jasper left Elliot's side to help them, and she ducked away, hoping to find a quiet place away from the others to rest. Her head was throbbing and sleep sounded amazing.

* * *

She had been alone for a quite a while, relaxing as a storm blew in, the cool breeze cooling her skin. She would have fallen asleep if appoarching feet hadn't interrupted her. Opening her eyes slowly, she saw Bellamy standing over her.

"How's your head?" He asked, squatting down in front of her.

She blinked at him, finding she didn't want to talk at all. But she shrugged to show that it still hurt like hell but she'd survive. She expected him to leave then, but instead, he just sat on the ground in front of her.

"It was Larkin." He spoke again suddenly.

She looked up at him, eyebrows furrowing together.

"Larkin was the one who came to me about shooting Jaha," Bellamy continued, "He promised me a spot on the dropship with Octavia if I shot Jaha."

"I knew it." She wanted to ask questions, but thinking wasn't something she felt up to doing at the moment, so she tried to keep the conversation simple.

"He asked me to shoot Jaha and make sure you got on the dropship."

She wasn't sure why Bellamy was telling her any of this. It would have made more sense if she had been pestering him about it, trying to get answers out of him about what happened, but she hadn't been. The conversation had been dropped the moment Elliot gave up trying to push him for answers. It wasn't the time for it and they had other things to worry about. This didn't seem like the best time for the conversation either; she was pretty sure she'd forget it by morning.

But Bellamy continued, and his next statement made her heart race, "They were going to float you, Elliot."

She looked at him, eyes wide, or what she expected was wide. Murphy had been right. It didn't matter to them if she lived or died. They were going to kill her. They weren't even going to give her a chance. She swallowed, finding her throat was dry and tried to clear it.

"Why are you telling me this?"

Bellamy shrugged, leaning his head back and shutting his eyes for a moment, "Because you mean as much to Larkin as Octavia does to me," he shrugged, "And you wanted to know."

"But why now?" Elliot pushed, she was over thinking, which seemed like a joke because she was barely thinking at all, "Shouldn't you be consoling Octavia right now?"

There was a moment between Elliot's question and Bellamy's response. She had missed something while she was hiding from the others and it seemed to stick a nerve in Bellamy. He tensed for a second before relaxing again.

"I wouldn't have known about them sending you guys to Earth until it was too late if Larkin hadn't come to me. In an odd way, it's all thanks to you."

Elliot couldn't help the laugh that escaped her lips. She shook her head, trying to ignore the change in attitude and tone in Bellamy Blake. Sure, she had seen his softer side these last couple of days, but this was a whole new level. This was like a pitiful form of flirtation. But when she looked over at him, she saw his face was serious.

Dropping the smile, she stared back at him, "Why should you be thanking me."

"Because Larking caring about you so much, helped me get to my sister. I would be up there with the rest of them, probably worrying about Octavia, maybe even thinking she's dead. But she's not and I'm not and it's because Larkin did what he could to protect you."

Again she scoffed, this time quietly, "Yeah, he was always trying to protect me."

"He loves you, Elliot. He'd do anything for you. I saw that on the Arc."

Elliot just shook her head, she was done with the conversation. Tired of talking about Larkin. Talking about how he was always there to protect her only reminded her that he was up there and she was done here. She didn't even know if he was still up there. Still alive. If something had happened. If someone had seen him helping Bellamy, that was it. She wouldn't ever see him again. It was best if she kept him out of her head.

"Well, you're welcome." She groaned, pushing herself off the ground. Bellamy was up on his feet quickly, grabbing at her as she leaned to the side.

She stood still for a moment, the world around her spin and her head rocked from side to side. She felt the urge to vomit but pushed it down. Taking in a couple deep breaths, she stood up straight.

"Come on, I'm taking you to Clarke." Bellamy offered, keeping a firm hold on her.

"No, she needs to worry about Finn." She groaned, blinking again.

She wasn't sure if Bellamy had responded or not, because an extreme head rush, sent her reeling and before she could stop herself, she was falling into his side. He had hoisted her up onto her feet some, but her legs gave out soon after.

"I can't see," She confessed, grabbing at his jacket, "Bellamy, I can't see anything."

* * *

 **So there is chapter 6. Got this one up a littler earlier, or later, however you guys wanna take it. I like this one better than the last two but it still needs work. Please feel free to send feedback, it's greatly appreciated. As always, hope you enjoy! Xx**


	8. AN 2

Hey guys! So sorry about the lack of story lately. Got crammed with Midterms and then got super sick. I figured I would be able to do a lot of writing because this week is spring break for me and usually don't have any plan but it's only Wednesday and it's been non-stop doing something so I've been a little crammed from writing time. I promise to have a chapter up soon. It is coming, I promise, just hang in a little longer.

Also, a little upset about everything going on with the show. I adore the show and the characters and it saddens me how things are being handle behind the scenes. I can't believe what happened in "Thirteen", its unbelievable. And now Ricky Whittle is leaving or has already left. I really do love this show and the characters and it makes me sad to think this might be the last season. But if what has been happening behind the scenes with Jason and the cast then maybe it's for the best. What do you guys think?

Again, so sorry and I'll have more up as soon as I can! Xx


	9. Chapter 7

Bellamy fumbled to grab the falling girl as she slumped into his side. He was surprised by the sudden weight but managed to get a good enough grip on her to prevent her from falling to the ground. Elliot groaned, coming out of her short unconsciousness and grabbed at his shirt. He braced himself, holding her up so she could regain her footing.

She blinked and dropped her head onto his chest, urging the spinning to stop long enough for her to disappear into her tent. But Bellamy had other plans. In a swift movement, he had Elliot propped against his side and was leading her in the direction of the dropship. A crack of thunder echoed through the trees and kept Elliot from protesting. She felt some relief when the clouds open up above them, cold, refreshing water raining down on them. By the time they were able to reach the dropship, they were both soaking and a majority of the camp was already huddled inside, trying to escape the rain.

Elliot immediately searched for Finn. She wasn't surprised to find him lying unconscious, the blade still protruding from his body, though she had hope something had improved. Raven and Clarke were leaning over him, dabbing at the sweaty forehead and arms with wet cloths. By the look on their faces, there hadn't been any improvement.

"Clarke." Bellamy's voice boomed above her. She had momentarily forgotten he was beside her and the sudden vibration of his voice rattled in her head. Her face scrunched up in pain, making her squeeze her eyes shut. When she opened her eyes, Clarke was already standing in front of her. Worry in her features. Her eyes scanned over Elliot, examining her for injuries. The girl wanted to wave her off, tell her to worry about Finn but the dizziness returned and her head dipped slightly, eyes drooping.

"She blacked out for a couple seconds. I'm going back out, but she needs someone to watch her." Bellamy explained.

Clarke reached out and grabbed Elliot's chin, gently lifting her head to examine her eyes once again. Elliot swatted her away, making it evident how irritated she was at the two of them. She wasn't the one they needed to be worrying about. She glanced back at Finn, finding Raven had also left his side. Tilting her head around Clarke, she found the girl bent over another work table, fiddling with something while other teens stood around and watched.

"Where did you bump your head?" Clarke asked, grabbing her attention once more.

Elliot ignored Clarke's question, turning to looking up at the man holding her, "Bellamy, you're not going back out there. It's only going to get worse."

Light from above stung and her vision blurred with pain once again. She felt Bellamy sigh against her side and he reached to the back of her head. Parting the hair carefully, he motioned with his head to Clarke.

"Back here. She was thrown by the asshole that got Finn, hit her head on something. She was down for a while."

Elliot grunted. Pushing off Bellamy, she crossed her arms, "He, more or less, tossed me backwards and I was down for a couple seconds. A little bump to the head isn't going to do anything. Clarke, you need to worry about Finn."

The blonde bit her cheek, turning to look at said boy only briefly, "I can't do anything until Raven gets contact with my mother. And a little bump to the head can do a lot of damage. You need to take it easy."

"Keep an eye on her." Bellamy let go of Elliot, leaving her to balance on her own.

Clarke nodded, letting him begin to step away and turned back to Elliot, whose mouth parted in protest. Finding no energy to argue with either of them, she sighed and crossing her arms again and averted her attention. She raised an eyebrow when Clarke showed the hint of a smirk, sending her a questioning look.

"Irritable," Clarke answered, only causing more confusion, "Irritability is a sign of concussion."

Elliot pursed her lips, "That doesn't count. I'm always irritated."

Another ghost of a feeble smile flashed over Clarke's face, and Elliot couldn't help but mimic it. She knew Clarke was stressed. Mentally, the girl was ripping her hair out, screaming at the top of her lungs, probably even wishing she could just step away from the leadership role and be one of the naïve teens running around, not caring about anything in the world. But Clarke's compassion and instinct forced her to do otherwise. There wasn't anyone in this camp that could save Finn, except her.

"Let me take a look at you. It won't take long," Clarke persuaded, "I have nothing else to do until Raven can get to my mother and it'll keep my mind off things."

Elliot couldn't argue with her and rolled her eyes. This only brought on what felt like thousands pin pricks stabbing her temples and she hissed, glancing at the female in front of her. She hoped she hadn't seen the wince of pain. Clarke tilted her head downward, eyeing her knowingly and with reluctant agreement from Elliot took the girl's arm. She led her over to the table beside Finn's, creating the sense of a medical ward within the bottom level of the dropship. Outside, rain hammered against the walls and roof and more teens ducked into the ship for protection from the weather. Thunder bellowed as lightning illuminated the sky.

"So you passed out?"

Clarke's tone had changed. For a brief moment, Elliot saw the girl's mother in Clarke's eyes. She had only met her a couple times when Abby did her routine Skybox checkups. The woman was always kind, regardless of if she wanted to be or if it was just her job, and Elliot had no problem with the woman coming in every other week to check her blood pressure or stick a needle in her arm. She hadn't seen the resemblance between the two until she first saw Clarke working on Jasper. They shared the same look of concentration, the same hopefulness. They held a sense of dignity when they were working.

She nodded and Clarke stepped around to look at the back of her head. She reached out and touched it, retracting when Elliot winced and ducked away.

"More or less fainted. It was only a couple of seconds." The injured girl groaned, itching to reach back and rub the goose egg growing on her head.

"Are you nauseous? Dizzy? Having trouble with your balance?" She continued to question, returning to stand in front of Elliot.

Elliot gave her a pointed look, "You already know the answers because you already asked the questions, Clarke."

Clarke stepped back a bit, hands rubbing together anxiously. She turned her head away, avoiding eye contact with her friend and Elliot chewed on her bottom lip. Reaching out, she took Clarke's hand. The girl was worried. Finn was lying a couple of feet away, dying for all they knew and she had no idea how to save him. It had been a rough start on Earth for all of them but while the others were distracting themselves with other things like running off and Bellamy's dumb motto; "whatever the hell they want", Clarke was carrying everything on her shoulders. From the very beginning, she had done what she could to protect them, regardless of the fact that more than half of them had hated her. She had kept them alive and it was taking a toll on her. Giving her hand a reassuring squeeze, Elliot smiled.

"It's gonna be alright. He'll be fine."

"But what if Raven can't make contact with the Arc? What if I can't talk to my mom?"

Elliot sighed. She didn't have a positive answer. Anything could happen. But they needed to have hope. _Clarke_ needed to have hope. Giving her another reassuring squeeze, she let go of Clarke's hand and pushed herself off the table.

"We'll figure something out. We always figure something out."

Clarke took a deep breath, nodding as she tried to believe Elliot's encouragement.

"But right now, you need to find some water, rest for a little bit. If you feel any worse, let me know, alright? And don't go to sleep." Elliot saluted her mockingly, edging off the table Clarke had seated her on. Clarke shook her head in return, rubbing the bridge of her nose and turning around towards Finn. Elliot watched her for a moment before slowly making her way to the other side. Her throat begged for something cold and refreshing and she made herself comfortable by a water jug that had been lucky enough to make it inside. She yawned, eyes drooping but Clarke had made her promise not to fall asleep and she sat up, shaking off the exhaustion.

* * *

It became harder and harder for her to keep her eyes open as she watched Clarke pace at the other end of the crowded room. Other teens had quieted down, separating into small groups to busy themselves with made up games and empty conversations. Some watched to see what Clarke was going to do about the dying boy. Elliot leaned against the cold wall, minding the throbbing knot on the back of her head and took a deep breath. She had fought sleep for a good ten minutes, head aching from trying to keep her eyes open. Slowly, she began to give up and welcomed sleep happily. Her nap was cut immediately short by someone dropping their hand down onto her thigh. She jolted awake, groaning at the pain running it's way down her back and blinked at the familiar brunette in front of her.

Octavia gave her a feeble smile, shifting on her feet where she had squatted down beside Elliot's outstretched legs. Her hand rested on her knee, rubbing it affectionately as she let the older girl familiarize with her surroundings once again. When Elliot furrowed her eyebrows at her, she dropped back onto her butt, crossing her legs and smiled.

"Clarke told me to keep an eye on you. There isn't much else to do because of the storm so looks like you're stuck with me."

Elliot groaned, inwardly bickering at Clarke, but pulled herself up to sit straight. She didn't need a babysitter. She pulled her legs into her body, resting her chin on her knees and turned back to Octavia. The younger girl had cleaned up since they had returned. Her attitude was different, but only slightly, like she was irritated. And she was fidgety. Her legs bounced softly as she played with her fingers. She was anxious.

"What's going on?" Elliot questioned, eyeing the group of boys that disappeared outside the ship. There was distant yelling but she couldn't hear it over the drumming rain.

"The storm is getting bad. There are still people out there." Elliot knew who Octavia was worried about. _Bellamy_ was still out there. And anyone that he had drug along for his little expedition was still out there. Another crack of thunder and a chorused gasp of surprise rippled through the teens.

"Mom, I need your help. One of our people was stabbed by a grounder." Clarke's voice cut through over all the others and Elliot's attention perked. She leaned to her left, peering over Octavia's shoulder, trying to listen in.

"Clarke," Chancellor Jaha's voice broke through somewhere, surprising Elliot, "Are you saying there are survivors on the ground?"

Stumbling to her feet, Elliot moved as quickly as she could to the table others had propped against. Octavia stayed right behind her, a hand outstretched to catch the still dizzy girl in case she decided to fall.

"I'm so sorry," Silence had fallen over everyone when the two girls reached the group, heads turned to their blonde leader, "Wells is—Wells is dead."

Another silence rose as the 100 silently recalled the events of and after Wells' death. Elliot stepped to Clarke to show support when Abby's voice cut through. She began instructing her daughter only to start cutting in and out seconds later.

"Raven, what's wrong?" Elliot turned to the girl hunched over the radio she had created, twisting and prodding at wires and dials. Raven shook her head in response.

"It's not the radio, it's the storm." As if to prove her statement, thunder rumbled outside, shaking the ship slightly before dying off once again.

Finally, Abby's voice cut through again, "Clarke, we need to hurry."

* * *

Clarke had instructed Octavia to get something to sterilize tools and hands with and the young girl stood puzzled for a moment. It was Elliot that suggested Monty's moonshine, offering to go with her friend to retrieve it. Even when Octavia told her to stay with Clarke and be helpful around the dropship, Elliot still followed her out into the storm.

The rain was cool, soaking them to the bone the moment they stepped outside. It was the closest thing Elliot had come to any sort of cleaning since they landed and she rather enjoyed it. But they were pressed for time and enjoyment would have to wait. Instead, she quickened her pace, minding how it hurt if she tried running and led Octavia to Monty and Jasper's tent.

She wasn't sure how the boys had made such a sturdy tent, but she was relieved to see they were still safe and dry inside. Monty was leaned over a metal basin, the smell of the contents filled the small space. Jasper was lying on his back, staring up at the tent ceiling. They both jumped when Elliot and Octavia poked their heads inside.

"We need some of your moonshine." Elliot informed, minding the rain they were bringing in.

Monty twisted on his knees to look at her, quirking an eyebrow.

"It's to help Finn. We don't have time to argue. Please, Monty, just give us the damn moonshine!" Her voice rose in tone, startling them all with the brief harshness. She immediately felt bad for the outburst but if she took it back now, it would only waste time.

She apologized after Monty handed them two large cylinders and they ducked back out into the storm, flinching when thunder boomed. A crack of lightning illuminated the sky, dazing Elliot for a moment with the sudden bright light. She stumbled backwards, squeezing her eyes shut.

"Elliot?" Octavia's voice was barely audible over the rain. She sounded distant, miles away even. But when Elliot opened her eyes again, the girl was standing not five feet from her. She reached out and grabbed Elliot's arm, urging her to hurry once again. Elliot kept up her pace, a nauseous feeling settling in her stomach. She was almost more relieved when they reentered the dropship and she was told to sit down.

Just as she sank down, her vision blurred and she fell forward onto her knees. Harper, another teen she had become friends with throughout their first few weeks on Earth, stepped towards her. She held a small metal bucket, offering it to Elliot without a word. Elliot took it, though the feeling of throwing up vanished and she was left ride out another headache. All she wanted to do was sleep. Harper placed a bucket beside her, watching Elliot lay on her side, curling her legs up and making herself comfortable. The girl stayed close to Elliot while she tried to sleep, stealing looks at her every now and again while she watched Clarke with the others.

It seemed just as Elliot was able to fall asleep, something was waking her up again. This time it was Raven yelling. She was urging everyone upstairs, groans and mumbles replying back to her.

Harper stood over Elliot still, this time offering her hand. Elliot reached up and grabbed it, letting the girl pull her to her feet.

"Raven's moving us upstairs so Clarke can concentrate. Think you can make it up the ladder?" The girl was talking in a consoling tone, like a mother would to a sleepy child.

Elliot, too exhausted to reply with words, just shuffled towards the group ascending the ladder towards the second level. Her eyes met Clarke's and for a moment worry flashed across Clarke's features but she replaced it with a weak smile. Beside her, Raven had leaned down to Finn and whispered something. The boy's skin was pale and clammy, and Elliot's stomach flipped. _Pull through, Finn. Please pull through._

She was one of the last ones up the ladder, joining the rest of the hundred in the smaller upper level. People bickered about size and temperature and Elliot felt herself growing more irritated by the minute. She just needed peace and quiet. When Harper wasn't paying attention, she shuffled her way to the ladder once again and quickly began climbing. She didn't hear the voices overhead until she was sticking her head through the hole in the floor.

Bellamy, Miller, and a couple other guys that she had seen following Bellamy around like a pack of dogs, all turned to look at the newcomer. She looked back at them, unsure what to say. Locking eyes with Bellamy, she waited for him to send her away. Instead, he stepped closer, reaching out to help her onto the floor. It was only after she was standing when she saw the Grounder tied up on her right. Her eyes widened and she took a step backwards. Bellamy reached out to grab her, eyeing the hole she had just come out of. With a wave of his head, the trapdoor was shut.

"That's what you went back out there for? To snag this guy?" Elliot was furious. Bellamy had taken teens out in the midst of a dangerous storm to kidnap the Grounder that had already tried to kill them. It was stupid and idiotic and whatever excuse he was going to give her wouldn't suffice.

"We need answers."

"Shut up." She groaned, shrugging off his gasp. She stepped towards the restrained Grounder, ignoring the protest from the other boys to stop.

"Bringing him here could kill all of us, Bellamy." She turned back to the taller male, eyes hard.

Bellamy swallowed, glancing at the others around them. He took a step towards Elliot but stopped when the Grounder stirred. Elliot turned around quickly, blinking as she watched the male move and flex. His eyes drifted open, filling with alert. He tugged at his restraints, lunging forward at the girl. She yelped, stumbling backwards. Miller was quick to grab her, pulling her to the side out of harm's way.

"Tie him tighter," Bellamy ordered, "The last thing we need is this bastard getting free because you screwed up."

Miller left Elliot's side to help the others and she sank against the wall. She felt like she was spinning, the pain in her head hadn't dulled since the flash of lightning. Movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention and she watched Octavia climb onto the third floor. The look on her face held just as much disgust with the older Blake as Elliot felt.

"I told you he was protecting me," She explained, "You didn't have to do this."

Bellamy turned to her, keeping her away from the male, who, if Elliot was reading him correctly, had calmed drastically since the younger female had entered.

"This isn't about you. I'm doing this for all if us." Bellamy explained. Elliot mentally rolled her eyes. A concerned look from Miller and she shrunk back. She was sick of people babying her. There were more important things to do and she didn't need people to worry about a little head injury. Especially people who hadn't given her the time of day before.

"I did this for Finn and Jasper and Diggs and John and Roma," Bellamy continued, "For Elliot."

Eyes shot to the girl in the corner and she swallowed.

Octavia stared at her for a moment before returning to bicker with her brother, "It wasn't even him."

Bellamy towered over his little sister, but she didn't seem fazed. If anything, Bellamy seemed to be the one afraid. The thought made Elliot smirk. Octavia could hold her own just fine. It was so much her that Bellamy was afraid of, as it was the fact that Octavia didn't need Bellamy to protect as much anymore.

"We need to know what we're up against," He continued, "How many there are and why they're killing us. And he's gonna tell us right now."

Elliot decided to interject then. The argument was getting nowhere, both Blake's too stubborn to admit any kind of defeat. Pushing off the wall she was leaning against, she stepped back into the middle of the room, and placed herself between the siblings.

"He kidnapped Octavia," She held up her hand at Octavia's protest, "And cleaned her wound, saved her life even. Then we show up. He stabbed Finn in defense, we attacked him, left him unconscious and locked up and then hours later, you assholes show up again, beat him around a little bit and drag him through a thunderstorm back to our camp where you are going to beat him even more so that you can get answers," She crossed her arms, "Bellamy, he's not going to tell you a damn thing. All you're doing is putting us in danger."

"Bellamy, please don't do this." Octavia pleaded.

"Get them out of here." Bellamy growled back, waving a hand at the girls.

Miller and Drew, another dickhead Elliot would have loved to punch in the throat, stepped forward and lead the girls to the ladder.

"I was there!" Octavia protested, "I- hey get- get off of me!"

"Bellamy, don't do this!" Elliot called out, trying to get through to him one last time, only to get a rough shove from Drew. The jolt knocked her head around a bit and she quickly quieted down.

When it was clear fighting wouldn't do anything, both girls admitted defeat. Octavia climbed onto the ladder, face red with anger. She stopped halfway in the hole and looked back at her brother,

"I don't even think he speaks English. He won't understand you."

And then she was gone, the echoed thud of her boots hitting the floor below. Elliot was still leaned against the ladder, eyes closed, throat tightening with the urge to vomit.

"Elliot?" It was Miller. He was standing behind her, leaning to get a good look at her face. When she turned to him, he straightened, glancing at the others. She felt lightheaded, her skin becoming clammy. She blinked, head rolling slightly to the side.

"Elli-" He started, reaching out to him.

She swatted at his hand weakly, leaning back over, "I'm fine, just give me a second, aright?"

And then she couldn't stop it. She gagged twice before she vomited, emptying the contents of her stomach into a metal bucket Miller had snagged just in time. He winced, setting the bucket down and stepping away. Her legs became shaky and she gripped the railing again, cold rushing from her head down to her feet as she sank against the metal bars. Someone grabbed as her sides, lifting her away from the ladder.

"I thought you said you were fine." Bellamy teased as he led her back to her original corner.

She grabbed at her stomach, relieved that at least one of her pains had dissipated, "I was."

She wiped her mouth on her sleeve, disgusted by the taste in her mouth, when the dropship shook furiously. She was ripped from Bellamy's side and thrown to the ground, landing hard on her side. Blackness clouded her vision for a moment before returning blurred. She grappled for something to hold onto, grabbing the first thing she could. It moved at her touch, twisting out of her grasp and she reached for it again. As her sight came flooding back in, she came face to face with Bellamy. She let out a startled breath, blinking until the small dots that floated around disappeared.

"What the hell was that? Are we under attack?" He lifted her up and placed her against the wall. Her head throbbed more than it had before and she pressed on her temples, eyes squeezing shut.

"Storm damage," Drew called back, "We're ok."

Bellamy turned back to Elliot, reaching up and pulling her hands away from her head, "You should have Clarke check you over again. You're only getting worse."

"When she's done with Finn, and he's okay, then we can worry about me."

They just stared at each other then, Bellamy more or less examining her as color returned to her cheeks. She blinked at him, swallowed back another bad taste in her mouth, suddenly feeling self-conscious with him this close to her. She shifted uneasily, only then realizing he was still holding onto her hands. Bellamy seemed to sense this as well and quickly let go, standing up to create distance between them. She didn't try to look up at him, knowing it would only hurt her to do so. Instead, she brought her knees to her chest and rested her forehead against her arms. Miller called to Bellamy and she heard him shuffle away, leaving her alone to compose herself.

* * *

At some point she had fallen asleep, waking up curled in a corner, her headache now dull and positioned just over the goose egg she sported. Another figure had joined them upstairs, this time being Clarke. She bypassed all of them, rushing towards the grounder. In her hand was the blade he had stabbed into Finn's abdomen, still covered in blood.

"What's on this?"

"What are you talking about?" Bellamy stepped forward, keeping her a close distance from their prisoner.

"He poisoned the blade. All this time, you knew Finn was gonna die, no matter what we did," Elliot pushed herself up, panic had settled in all of them, "What is it? Is there an antidote?"

Octavia arrived next, hurrying to the blonde's side, "Clarke, he doesn't understand you."

Bellamy weaved his way through the girls, hurrying towards a small bench structure and bent down to dig through something, "Vials. It's gotta be here."

Clarke and Elliot joined him, hovering behind him as he lifted a small container full of thin vials. They were an assortment of colors, worn and dirty. Clarke snatched it from his hand immediately, rummaging through it.

"You'd have to be stupid to have a poison around this long without an antidote," She quickly returned to the Grounder, holding the container to his face, "Which one?"

The Grounder stayed silent, glaring down at Clarke. He looked menacing, blood and bruises covering his face. He was a large man, muscle rippled through his arms and under his shirt. If he managed to get out, he could easily take most of them down. And he had every right to be. They had shaken the hornet's nest and now he was pissed.

"I'll get him to talk." Bellamy threatened, stepping forward. Octavia lunged at him, pleading for him to stop, but he just barely slipped out of her fingers. Elliot reached forward, grabbing at his arm as tightly as she could.

He spun around quickly, and ripped his arm from her grasp, "He wants Finn to die. Why can't you see that?" When Elliot didn't respond, he looked to Clarke, "Do you want him to live or not?"

Octavia was quick to put herself between Clarke and her brother, pleading with the other girl, "Clarke, you even said it yourself. This is not who we are! He was protecting me. He saved my life."

"We're talking about Finn's life." Bellamy interjected.

"Finn is our friend. He," Elliot pointed at the Grounder, "tried to kill him. He's still trying to kill him. Octavia, we need that antidote."

The younger girl retracted from the others, hurt that no one was on her side. She recoiled towards the ladder, watching as her friends advanced on her savior. Bellamy cut a seat belt from the ship, wrapping it tightly around his arm.

"You're gonna show us the antidote or you're gonna wish you had."

Clarke pulled Elliot with her to the side, holding onto her arm even after they were both in the clear. They stared on, both with a lead weight in their stomach as Bellamy swung the buckle into the Grounder's side. Clarke looked away, a hiss of disgust escaping her lips, but Elliot couldn't seem to stop watching. Her hands shook and her heart was racing, but she didn't speak or move. Clarke pushed away from her seconds later, dropping to her knees in front of the Grounder and dropping the vials on the floor.

"Please. Which one's the antidote?"

When there wasn't a response, Bellamy rested his hand on her shoulder. She stood reluctantly, stepping back to the side with Elliot.

"Just tell them." Octavia shouted from behind.

There was a split second of change in the Grounder's features as Octavia's voice called out and he looked to her. It was brief, interrupted by another painful hit of the seat belt buckle, but Elliot had caught it this time.

This went on for what seemed like forever. Bellamy would hit him a couple times and Clarke would interrupted to ask the question again. Elliot had long since quit watching, finding that there was no hope for Finn.

By now, he was probably already dead, a morbid thought, but something they would have to come to terms with. Seemed like the only thing on Earth to do was to die. Maybe Earth wasn't so survivable after all. Especially not for a group of people that hadn't stepped foot on it in over 95 years. Maybe they were all in over their heads.

There was a change of pace when Raven shouted from below. Clarke became more frantic, voice raising a couple octaves, "Which one? Which one is it?"

Elliot stepped up, standing between Bellamy and the Grounder, "If you tell us, they'll stop. Please, tell us which is the antidote and they'll stop this."

He just stared down at her. It wasn't a threatening stare, wasn't filled with hate or anger. But more despair. His eyes were almost hollow, like he was giving up hope as well. He would rather die than tell them. Torturing him would get them nowhere. Gritting her teeth, she took a step closer.

"If he dies, they'll kill you. But I promise you, the torturing won't stop. Not until they've bled you dry. Please, just tell us the antidote and this will all be over."

Her response came from Bellamy. She shifted under his grasp as he pulled her away, setting her to the side as he picked up a blade.

"If that doesn't work, maybe this will," His attention averted to Clarke, "You don't have to be here for this."

Clarke just straightened her shoulders, looking back at him, "I'm not leaving until I get that antidote."

The nauseous feeling returned and settled in Elliot's stomach. She swallowed, blinking as Bellamy stepped forward. His movements were slow, giving the Grounder plenty of time to change his mind.

"Last chance." He growled, another second past.

Turning away just in time, Elliot heard the blade slice through the Grounder's hand, heard it sink into the flesh. She covered her mouth, walking to the other side of the dropship. Her head spun for a brief moment and she shut her eyes. She had realized her returning headache had never actually left and she was waiting for the moment this was all over and she could rest again. Leaning against a table, she rubbed the bridge of her nose. She lifted her head only when Raven appeared.

"What's taking so long? He stopped breathing," Clarke panicked, rushing towards the ladder, but Raven blocked her, "He started again, next time he might not."

Defeated, Clarke gestured towards their captive, "He won't tell us anything."

"Wanna bet." Raven shoved through the others, heading towards the wall of wires beside Bellamy.

The male questioned her motives, stepping away as she pulled the wires from the wall. The Grounder reacted immediately, putting as much distance as he could between himself and the sparking weapon.

"Showing him something new." She threatened, and stabbed the wires into his abdomen. He shook with the shock, unable to fight the surge rushing through his body. She removed the wires to threaten him again and Elliot was actually amazed by the amount of strength this man had. He still said nothing after the third time Raven electrocuted him.

She only stopped when Octavia screamed out, firing back the same response they had all given her. He was trying to kill Finn. Finn was their people. This man was not.

Elliot was the first to see Octavia lunge for the knife Clarke had tossed to the side, scooping it up quickly. She rushed forward, ready to fight for the weapon but she wasn't quick enough. She and the others watched Octavia run the blade down her forearm, drawing blood immediately.

"He won't let me die."

Dropping to her knees in front of the Grounder, she pointed at the assortment of vials, "Which one?"

Surprise fell over the others as his head tilted to the right, guiding her to the antidote. She quickly handed it over to Clarke who rushed downstairs with Raven to see if there was still a chance for Finn. Elliot slouched against the wall, thankful that all of it was, for the most part, over, and took a deep breath. She was escorted to down to the second level by Miller, and was put under Harper's watchful eye. The girl never left her sight, even after the storm had passed and they were allowed back outside. Harper stayed with her while she slept, finally get a restful nap when Clarke arrived. Her intentions weren't to wake the girl, just to see if she was okay. Bellamy had informed her on the incident during the storm and Clarke had grown more worried about her friend.

"I'll talk to my mother and see what she thinks I should do. For now, you'll just rest. No heavy lifting, no going on hunts. Just rest and get better, okay?"

Elliot didn't even want to argue. Shutting her eyes once again, she thanked Clarke and fell back to sleep.

* * *

 **Finally another chapter! It was actually kind of hard writing about having a concussion which I thought wouldn't be the case since I've had a couple myself, but regardless I hope you guys enjoyed.**

 **Also, I couldn't remember where Jasper and Monty were during this episode nor could I remember if they said where they were. So if you guys remember or if i figure it out, I'll probably come back and edit that later.**

 **As always, reviews are greatly appreciated and thanks so much for reading!**


	10. AN: Hiatus

So it's been a while since I've posted anything and I'm not sure anyone is really bothered by that or not but I just wanted to let you know that I'm probably going to be taking a break from this story for a while. I haven't been able to get a decent chapter out, much less finish a chapter. So as of right now, this story is on a hiatus until I can get back into it. I'm sorry if this upsets anyone and I'm very glad and thankful that people have put the time in to read this, hopefully you enjoyed it. Xx


	11. Chapter 8

She hated being as helpless as she was. Which, in fact wasn't very helpless at all. Though she wasn't allowed to do much of the heavy lifting or strenuous work, she was assigned to food patrol, working alongside Monty and Jasper as they packaged rations into small bags and tossed them into crates. She was bored with the continuous routine, nothing exciting or dangerous happened on food patrol.

 _Crack shell. Dump nut. Fill bag. Close bag. Toss bag into container._

The only thing keeping her from going completely crazy was Jasper and Monty's constant joking and banter. They had enjoyed their share of the nuts as well, tossing them into each other's mouths more than they were tossing them in bags. Their fun was momentarily paused when Clarke appeared asking for Dax. Elliot had no clue who Dax was, but then again she'd never seen half of these kids before they landed. Being of no help to her friend, she just shook her head and tossed another nut into her mouth.

"Over there on the meat crew." One of the boys guided.

"Save some for the rest of us." Clarke scolded them playfully, popping a few of the nuts into her own mouth.

She gave them a friendly smile and headed on her way. Elliot watched her, noticing the obvious tension in her shoulders and decided that following her friend was a good way to escape her boredom. Maybe she could even convince Clarke to let her get back to doing something a little more entertaining. Hurrying around Jasper and Monty, she followed the blonde. She waited until Clarke had spoke to the Dax kid before making herself known.

"Clarke, wait up!"

Clarke turned almost immediately, waiting for her patiently. Elliot knew better than to jog, a migraine already making its way to her temples, but hurried as fast as she could, afraid to keep the other girl waiting.

"What's up?" The blonde asked, her tone hurried.

Elliot glanced at the paper in her hands, then to the girl, "Where are you going?"

Clarke looked at the paper as well, sighing before she responded, "They found some records that show a supply depot pretty close to here. I'm going to go check it out."

Elliot nodded, "Cool, I'll go with you. I'm dying to get out of here."

But Clarke was quick to shoot her down, shaking her head and tucking the paper into her pocket, "You're not healed enough yet. Plus, I'm not really looking for good company right now."

Although upset Clarke was still doctoring her, she couldn't help but smile. Raising an eyebrow, she jutted a thumb over her shoulder, "Bellamy's still in the dropship."

Clarke returned the smile, though it was faint, and thanked her before stepping around the brunette and heading back towards the ship. Elliot turned on her heel, moving back over to the table Jasper and Monty were standing around, when a voice caught her attention.

She turned her head towards the all too familiar voice, finding it coming from the tent housing Raven's makeshift camera radioed back to the Arc. Larkin's voice was muffled by the other voices around her, but she knew it anywhere. Her heart began to beat wildly. The idea of seeing her godfather, knowing he was still alive, shallowed her breathing. Calming herself, she moved towards the tent.

Standing just to the side of the tarp, she tried to make out what Larkin's was saying. And to Dax of all people. Someone she had never seen in her entire life was having a conversation with Larkin before she could. She grew agitated with the assumption, but her curiosity overruled jealously. Just inches from the tent, she tried to listen in as closely as she could.

"I can guarantee your mom a spot on the first dropship and for you a choice assignment when I get to the ground." Larkin's voice sounded menacing. Like a completely different person. Leaning in even closer, she fought the urge to storm in and question him.

"What do you want me to do?" Dax asked.

Elliot's stomach tightened, waiting for Larkin's response. She knew without a doubt that it had something to do with her. There wasn't anything else it could be. Then her stomach tightened. Jaha was still alive. Bellamy's mission to kill the chancellor had fallen through, which meant Larkin was in trouble. But what could he have to say to Dax? How was Dax going to help him?

"Kill Bellamy Blake."

Larkin's voice came through almost too clear for Elliot's liking. She felt suddenly sick and stumbled away from the tent. She tripped over a pile of logs, catching her footing as others turned to look at her. Straightening herself and swallowing back the bile building in her throat, she tried to steady her breathing and find a place to disappear.

But she couldn't disappear. She needed to find Bellamy. She needed to talk to Larkin. She couldn't talk to Larkin. The man he had become to save her wasn't the man she was familiar with. She wasn't ready to face him just yet. So instead, she headed towards the dropship, hoping to run into the older male before he left with Clarke.

* * *

"Where's Bellamy" She asked, already moving towards the ladder leading to the upper level. Octavia shook her head, pointing back at the door.

"He let like five minutes ago with Clarke. They're going on some kind of supply run. Why?"

Elliot didn't respond. There wasn't time. Leaving Octavia confused in the ship, she ran back outside. The transition from dark to light stung her eyes but she ignored it, searching the camp for any signs of Bellamy. She caught sight of him just as he stepped out of the camp, jumping when Octavia appeared beside her. The younger girl looked at her brother as well, watching him leave before returning back inside, mumbling something along the lines of ass under her breath.

As soon as Clarke and Bellamy disappeared from her view, she was looking for another face. She could vaguely remember Dax's facial features, remembering him on from the brief glance she stole when he stepped out of the tent after her god-father order him to murder Bellamy. But it wasn't hard to pick out him out of the others as he stood and followed after the two. Searching for a weapon, Elliot grew antsy. She pocketed a small knife she had swipe from the table to her right and hurried after Dax.

* * *

She had sized him up as best she could while keeping her distance. He was tall, muscular, probably out weighing her by a good 100 pounds. She was pretty far away from Bellamy and Clarke, losing them every once and a while, but her attention was focused on the man hunting them. She kept her footfalls quiet, dodging piles of dead leaves and twigs. The trees and underbrush gave both of them a good amount of coverage, but as long as she stayed directly behind him, she was able to keep him in her sight. It wasn't until they reached a large open field, that she started contemplating her attack. He was only a few feet behind Bellamy, watching him search for something behind a fallen wall. Elliot had left any type of coverage and was moving as quickly and quietly as she could towards Dax. Relief washed over her when Clarke caught the attention of Bellamy, moving him further from his pursuer and moments later they had disappeared into some bunker underground. Now it was just her and the murderer.

Out of the corner of her eye, something darted past, and her attention was distracted. She turned to see what was lurking in the underbrush beside her, only to find it completely empty. Giving it another quick scan, she blinked away the fuzzy feeling and turned back towards Dax.

Her heart dropped into her stomach as something flashed in front of her, knocking her back onto her bottom. She scrambled away from the face in front of her, blinking only once, before it disappeared.

"No." She whimpered, clutching at her chest as she looked around her frantically.

 _"_ Elliot _."_

The voice floated through her ears, seeming to come from all around her. Her mind scrambled for an explanation, her palms beginning to sweat.

"Elliot, you lied."

She leapt onto her feet, stumbling away from the small girl on her left. It couldn't be real. She couldn't be real.

"You lied and now I'm dead."

She was crazy. Insane. Maybe her hit to the head was a lot worse than they had originally assumed. But still, she seemed so real. She was standing right there. Just like she had remembered her. Hair falling from her braids from longs days of working. From running away from the others, getting caught in low hanging tree limbs. Face covered in a mixture of tears and sweat and dirt.

"Charlotte." She whimpered.

"You promised nothing would happen to me and now I'm dead. I'm dead, Elliot. Because of you."

Charlotte's voice was harsh, darker than Elliot had remembered. Menacing. Spitting the hatred and guilt at her. Before Elliot could respond, she was blindsided, knocked to the ground by a heavy force. The joint made her ears ring, eyes briefly rolling back in her head. She was stunned for only a second before instinct kicked in and she fought back against her attacker.

Dax pinned her to the ground, his legs straddling her hips to keep her from moving. She fought against him, slamming fists into his sides until he managed to pin them down as well. She started to panic then. She hadn't been ready for him to attack. She had let her guard down and now he was going to kill her, kill Bellamy. Maybe even kill Clarke if the girl got in the way. Heart racing, she used her legs to try and squirm her way out from underneath him.

His fist came down hard against her jaw, the ringing returning as her vision came and went. The hand wrapping around her throat only made things worse and her struggle to free herself lessened. Then in a last attempt to save herself, she managed to pull a hand out from underneath him and slam it into the side of his neck. He coughed, releasing her almost immediately and dropping down beside her. She scrambled to her feet, vision blurry and head throbbing, gasping for air as she tried to stand. But he was quick, leaping at her again and sending them both down the hill.

She was slower getting up this time, blinking and coughing. Everything ached, and the bleeding from her nose probably wasn't good for her healing concussion. Lucky enough, it seemed Dax had taken a hit from the tumble down the hill as well, struggling to stand almost as much as she was. She was prepared this time, though it wasn't much of a fight she was putting up. She managed to get a punch in before his fist came down hard on her jaw, knocking her to the ground and unconscious.

* * *

"Elliot, sweetheart. Wake up."

The voice was distant, fading away as her eyes fluttered open. She had been out for a while now, the surrounding darkness told her that. She could hear someone talking, another voice, this one seeming to be closer than the one that had pulled her out of unconsciousness, but her body ached horribly and she made no move to get up quickly. Instead, she laid flat on her back, watching clouds move over head, her mind still reeling.

"Elliot. It's time to get up."

The voice came back, still faint and distant, but familiar. Elliot blinked, eyebrows furrowing.

"Get up, Ellie." This time, she sat up as the voice spoke, examining her surroundings for a source. It wasn't Charlotte this time, the image of the girl fading into the back of her mind like it had been since the night the little girl died.

"You have to get up."

"-but here you are, and Larkin said no witnesses." Dax's voice came from her left and she forgot about the faceless words, pushing to her feet as quickly as she could. She came out here to stop him from killing Bellamy. She didn't have time to ache.

From where she stood, she could see Bellamy on the ground, Dax standing over him, a gun in his hands. Clarke stood just behind him, holding her own weapon.

"What is he talking about?" The blonde asked, eyes never leaving Dax.

Elliot crept closer, keeping low and slow, knowing her window would close if she didn't play this out right. Staying in the darkness, she used the trees to hide her as she neared.

"Larkin set it up. He gave me the gun to shoot the Chancellor."

Her heart sank at the sound of Larkin's name and what he had done, but she pushed away the sadness and focused on saving her friends. Was that what she was calling Bellamy now? A friend? She could think about that later, now, she was more worried about Clarke and that damn gun.

"Walk away now, and I won't kill you," Dax threatened, "I already had to deal with the Elliot bitch."

She froze only briefly, startled by her name in the stillness. Clarke and Bellamy seemed briefly stunned by this news as well, demeanor's changing.

"You think Larkin's going to do anything for you now that you killed Elliot? The only reason he's sending you to kill me is because of her," Bellamy replied, "What do you think he's doing to do after he finds out you killed her?"

Dax seemed unfazed by the threat, merely shrugging, "She was collateral damage and he won't find out it was me."

Turning, he pointed the gun at Clarke but she was quickly, squeezing the trigger. When the gun did nothing but a pathetic click, she scrambled for the nearest tree, hiding as Dax shot at her. Bellamy had taken Dax's distraction to his advantage, lunging at him. They wrestled on the forest floor for a while before Dax gained the upper hand. Clarke leapt from her hiding spot to attack him but he hit her hard in the stomach. She crumbled almost instantly, gasping for air and clutching at her abdomen. Returning his attention to Bellamy, Dax threw punch after punch, before the click of a gun stopped him. He froze above the other male, eyes widening in momentary terror, shaking as the barrel of the gun came to rest against his temple.

"You should have killed me, asshole." Elliot's voice was dry and stiff. Her eyes hard. Despite the pain coursing through her body, she stood stoic, arms held out in front of her. She let Dax take in a shaky breath, already planning his escape before pulling the trigger. The gunshot rippled through the trees, much louder than it had been moments earlier. Dax fell limp to Bellamy's side, and the three still living sat in complete silence.

Clarke pulled herself up against a tree, taking in deep breaths and stared at Elliot. There wasn't a readable expression on her face, besides the evident pain, but her eyes never wavered from the girl. Bellamy pushed Dax's lifeless body away from him and stood, coming to face Elliot. Tentatively, he took the gun from her, tucking it into the back of his pants. She stared at him, setting her jaw before letting out a long breath. He gave her a small nod and moved towards Clarke.

"You okay?" She asked as he collapsed down beside her, leaning back against the tree. They both looked at Elliot. Her eyes had dropped to Dax's body before, she herself shuffled over to them, dropping to the ground with a groan.

"No," He breathed, "I'm not. My mother, if she knew what I've done, who I am. She raised me to be better. To be good."

"Bellamy." Clarke tried to reason with him.

He shook his head, interrupting her, "And all I do is hurt people. I'm a monster. "

Elliot listened to them. Bellamy belittling himself and Clarke trying to praise him. He had saved her. Risked his life to attack a man that wielded a gun. A man intent on killing him. And though he had been an asshole in the past, Clarke was speaking the truth.

"None of us would've survived this place, if it wasn't for you. You want forgiveness, fine, I'll give it to you. You're forgiven, okay, but you can't run, Bellamy."

Elliot looked over at them, curious. _Run? Bellamy was trying to run?_

"You have to come back with us. You have to face it." Clarke finished.

Bellamy's lip quirked into a smirk, eyebrows rising, "Like you faced your mom?"

Stumped, Clarke's mouth formed a tight line, but she relaxed, a smile ghosting across her own mouth, "You're right. I don't want to face my mom. I don't want to face any of it. All I think about every day is how we're gonna keep everyone alive, but we don't have a choice."

"Jaha will kill me when he comes down." Bellamy replied.

"Tell him," Elliot's voice was dry and she took a moment to swallow before continuing, "Tell him it was Larkin that told you to shoot him. Tell him exactly why he made you do it."

"But Lar-" Bellamy argued.

"Larkin broke the law. Larkin tried to kill the Chancellor. He tried to kill you. What happens to him, won't be your fault. It's his own."

Bellamy and Clarke exchanged a glance. Elliot knew that look. The look of pity. Of worry. Groaning, she stood back up.

"I don't know about you two, but I've had a hell of a day. And by the pain pulsing against the back of my eyeballs, I'm going to say my concussion isn't going away anytime soon," She brushed herself off, "Let's keep this little moment to ourselves. Where did you get that? Are there anymore?" She pointed down at the gun Clarke had once held.

"In the bunker, but you saw it, it's all duds." Clarke stood as well, followed by Bellamy.

"It's because they're wet. Give them a day to dry and they should work. We can use them against any Grounder attacks." Elliot made her way towards the small hatch door before Bellamy tugged her to a stop.

"Wishful thinking. What if they don't work?" He inquired.

She gave him a pointed look, "What if they do but we figured they didn't so we just left them here? It won't hurt to try."

She stepped away from him, reaching the hatch and stepping down, "And it's called hope, asshole. You should have some."

Again, the other two looked at one another, Clarke coming up beside him to stop only momentarily before following Elliot back into the bunker. As they carried guns from the barrels to the exit, Elliot let her mind wander back to the voice that had woken her up. It was familiar but only enough to itch at her brain. Like the answer was at the tip of her tongue but she just couldn't seem to find the answer. As they trekked back to camp, she pushed it back with the memory of Charlotte, hoping a good night's rest would wash away most of the craziness of today. When Larkin flashed across her mind, she knew it wouldn't be that easy to just move on with things.

* * *

She could hear Jasper's voice over the sounds of insects and other creatures coming out of the night. Something about their Grounder prisoner. Or lack thereof. Elliot wasn't quite sure, nor did she really care at this point.

"What if he brings other Grounders back?" Jasper panicked.

Other teens joined in, though their attention became directed at the three returning. Elliot waited for one of the others to start in on a speech. Something they were both pretty good at, as it seemed they were always trying to one up each other in the motivational delivery department.

"Let the Grounders come. We've been afraid of them for far too long and why? Because of their knives and spears. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of being afraid." Bellamy had kept his speech short this time, something Elliot planned on teasing him -and Clarke- about later.

They let the guns drop to the ground, a chorus of amazement rippling through the group around them.

"There are weapons, okay, not toys. And we have to be prepared to give them up to the guard when the dropships come. But until then, they're gonna help keep us safe." Clarke explained.

Bellamy nodded, adding, "And there are plenty more where these came from. Tomorrow we start training, and if the Grounders come, we're gonna be ready to fight."

A cheer erupted from the other teens, and Bellamy order a couple of his boys to move the guns to the ship. Clarke latched onto Elliot immediately, pulling her away from the others.

"Go rest," She instructed, "I'm going to be there with Bellamy when he talks to Jaha, then I'm going to ask my mother what I need to do about you. But for right now, I need you to sit down and don't move. I'll have Raven bring you some water."

Elliot held up her hands in defense, seating herself beside the fire, "Don't have to ask me twice."

As Clarke stepped away, she curled into the seat and watched the flames climb into the sky, embers floating away until disappearing and being replaced by stars above. She figured Clarke wouldn't be happy if she slept, not until she able to make sure she was okay, which she could have clearly expressed that, but no matter how hard she fought with her eyelids, they seemed to be stronger. Soon, she was falling into a restless sleep, the crackling flames still echoing in her ears.

She startled awake, sitting up too quickly and grabbing at her head when her vision blurred. Not quite sure what had woken her up, her eyes widened in momentary surprise when Clarke appeared beside her.

"I didn't mean to scare you." Clarke's voice was soft, kind. It had been a while since Elliot had heard her talk so gently.

She waved her off and rubbed sleep from her eyes, "You're fine, it wasn't you. I didn't mean to fall asleep. I just-"

Clarke offered her water, and sank onto her knees. Elliot noticed the makeshift medical equipment she had brought along, and smiled, relaxing as Clarke examined the growing bruises on her face.

"You shouldn't have followed him, Elliot. I told you, you weren't healed yet." The blonde scolded.

Elliot wanted to roll her eyes, but thought against it, and instead gave her a shrug, "It would have been fine, if I hadn't started going crazy."

This seemed to peak Clarke's interest and the look in her eyes told Elliot to continue.

"I saw Charlotte," She sighed, "Like clear as day. She was standing there, talking to me. She- it was so real. I don't know -I'm not crazy though, right?"

Clarke nodded along, her attention now on the faint bruises on her neck, "I saw my father. I was even back on the Arc, in my cell. So no, you're not crazy Ellie."

There was silence for a minute while Clarke moved over to sit beside her, finished being doctor for the night. They sat side by side, watching the now dwindling fire, Elliot enjoying the water Clarke had offered her.

"What did she say? When Charlotte was talking to you, what did she say?" Clarke questioned, rolling her head to the side.

Elliot didn't look at her, licking her lips. _You lied and now I'm dead._

"Nothing. She just kept apologizing," another moment of silence, "Did you talk to your mom?"

"About you, yes. About my father, yes. But I don't want to think about the second one right now. Okay? Let's just relax." Clarke scooted further down into her seat, eyes closing.

"What about Bellamy. Did he talk to Jaha?" Elliot didn't mean to pester, but she was curious. She felt like she missed a lot while she was asleep. She needed to be caught up on things.

Clarke looked back over at her, "With a little persuasion from me, Jaha forgave him."

Elliot let the smile on her face fade, looking away from her back at the flames. Clarke mimicked her, though words sat on the tip of her tongue. Knowing she was dying to continue on, Elliot sighed. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she mustered up the courage to ask her next question.

"What about Larkin?"

"He lied." She stated simply.

* * *

Larkin followed behind Kane, keeping himself only a few steps behind. His hands were laced behind his back, sweaty as they twisted together. They came up on Shumway in the middle of the hallway, both stopping as guards came from the other end and up behind.

Shumway fought against them as the men cuffed him, questioning their motives as they pulled them from the watchful eyes of the people.

"You're a disgrace." Kane hissed.

Shumway, stunned and appalled by the accusations, shifted his glance throughout the council, finding only Kane and Chancellor staring him dead in the eye.

"You've got the wrong guy. I haven't spoken to Blake since we arrested his sister. There's been some kind of mistake," He was pleading, "Chancellor, you have to believe me. I didn't have anything to do with this. Larkin, you're my friend. Tell them I wouldn't do something like this."

He was dragged away, still yelling out as the doors closed behind them. Larkin listened until he was too faint to hear before dismissing himself from the council. He returned to his living quarters, waiting until most of the other residents had gone to bed before making his way to the Skybox.

A young guard met him at the locked cell, exchanging a small nod before opening the door. Larking stepped inside, Shumway standing up immediately.

"Larkin, you have to help me. Isn't there anything you can do? You've got to stop them from floating me." The guard begged, reaching out to his friend.

Larkin stepped forward, pulling out one of the guard batons, the electric current rippling through it, "It won't come to that, Commander."

Shumway's expression changed, his eyes narrowing, "It was you. You tried to kill the Chance- "

Larkin struck him in the side of the head with the baton. The electric current and blow was enough to render him unconscious and the council man took this time to bust the plastic guard off a vent. Breaking it haphazardly, he slit the unconscious man's wrists, blood rising to the wounds and pooling on the floor. Placing a hand over his nose and mouth he waited for the man's chest to stop rising and falling, the heart inside slowing coming to a stop. Standing, he hid the baton once again, and moved to the door.

The guard on the outside didn't say a word as he let Larkin out, shutting and locking it once again before following him down the hall. They traded another nodded before going their separate ways.

* * *

Elliot didn't think about murdering Dax until later that night, when she was alone in her tent. She had been almost asleep, eyes growing heavy enough that she gave up fighting, when the sound of the gunshot ricocheted through her mind. She sat up, pulling her knees into her chest and replayed the moment over and over in her mind. The look of helplessness on Bellamy's face. The gun hidden by leaves, just barely visible. The heaviness in her hands as she lifted it up. Placing it against Dax's head. Mentally screaming at herself to just pull the damn trigger and get it over with. Watching the life leave his body, it dropping to the ground as the shot still echoed through the trees. The look on Bellamy's face as he took the gun away from her. The look on Clarke's face.

She had half expected one of the them to mention it at some point but they hadn't. And the next day, they seemed to have moved on, Bellamy only briefly questioning her about her injuries. Other people whispered about the bruises on her face, but no one had the guts to ask and she didn't care to explain. So she went about her life, doing what little Clarke had told her she could do. Most of her days were spent preparing food, sometimes she washed clothing, or helped Clarke with small medical emergencies. She was designated to changing Finn's bandages for her friend a week after the incident until she grew bored and taught Raven how to clean and dress the wound and busied herself with mopping around. Then one day, Clarke approached her with a smile, telling her that she was off the hook.

Shooting lessons began pretty soon after that. She found she was pretty good with a gun, though each shot felt all too familiar. But, there was no doubt that she had become one of the best shots and was made a main look out.

She never asked Clarke to clarify what she meant about Bellamy or Larkin, nor did she pester the Blake for answers either. It was better if she just didn't know. She tucked Larkin and his fate in the back of her mind, alongside Charlotte, and the voice, and Dax's death. She turned down the offer to talk to him when the question came about, saying she was too busy. The question wasn't pushed and the next person was sent in to talk to their loved ones. Jasper and Monty invited her to help with Moonshine, which she gladly expected, happy to be with them once again, though she was banned from drinking any by Clarke's orders. This took the fun out of things only a tad, but it seemed things were looking up for the Hundred. Even if it was only going to be for a little while.

 **So I lied. I got a random spurt of inspiration and was able to bust this chapter out. I'm iffy on it, there are things I like and things I don't, but I'm willing to live with it. I'm going to say that this story isn't on hiatus, but chapters are going to be slow getting up. Inspiration comes every so often for this story, but the love is still there. I do have so many ideas for the future and am excited to see where this goes.**

 **As always, I hope you guys enjoy it and thanks so much for reading and favoriting! Xx**


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